Talentobe Manager launches digital self-service offer to automate process for customers
Talentobe, a human centric, people analytics solution that empowers individuals and teams to identify and harness their unique soft skills to grow, recently launched its online shop. I interviewed Benoit Patra, Talentobe’s CTO, and Othmane Lahlou Amine, Key Account Manager, to explain what this initiative means for the company and its customers.
Can you explain what the Talent shop consists of?
Benoît: Our Talentobe Manager solution for HR Professionals is used to better identify talent using an assessment to evaluate an individual’s personality, motivations, and behaviors. Until now, we offered companies unlimited packages that allowed them to recruit one pool of candidates per year to be purchased through their account manager. Then, we realized that one standard offering can be somewhat problematic for some of our clients. Today, we are launching the self-service Talentobe shop, which allows them to buy as many profiles as they need when they need them.
Why did you decide to launch this new and innovative offer?
Othmane: This shop is actually not a surprise for our clients. They requested it, and we made it happen. Our customer satisfaction and feedback drive our innovation, and the shop is actual proof of that. The Talentobe shop now allows them to be autonomous and buy the number of credits they need without any support from the sales or customer success teams. With that said, if anything, this shows that companies are more mature and willing to invest to digitize their HR processes. However, they do not always know where to start, as the scope is quite large. At Talentobe, we offer them a solution that modernizes their recruitment and talent management processes, that is easy to use and access, and that is adaptable to their specific needs.
What is the added value for HR Professionals?
Benoît: The process of purchasing new credits to access additional profiles is completely automated. This allows any HR professional to be fully autonomous, from the order form to invoicing, including refund services and discount offers. Customers buy new packages and pay by credit card or Paypal. We ensure a completely secure payment by partnering with Shopify, a great and proven e-commerce platform.
It is accessible from within the app and for new Talentobe members regardless of the size, location and budget of the company. The only requirement is to have a Talentobe account, which is free and doable in less than 2 minutes.
Othmane: Our client base is extremely diverse, from very small to global; what they shared was the need for autonomy in managing their subscription. The shop allows them to do just that. And by doing so, they save time and money while modernizing their processes throughout their talent life cycle.
In conclusion?
Othmane: The Talentobe shop for HR professionals shows that they can provide their company with a high value-added service, that is easy to use, innovative and accessible by modernizing their image among candidates and employees. Today, HR professionals want and need to be actors in the transformation of their processes. They are convinced that they have a crucial role to play in strengthening their services, and thus enhancing the employer brand; we help them do just that.
Leverage Soft Skills to Accelerate Employee Training
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) figures, just under one-third of French people from 25 to 64 attend work-related training each year. Compared against research showing that 32% of jobs will change with technological progress and 14% risk being automated, this shift may cause concern for employers as they look to remain competitive and sustain business in the future. For employers, training will become crucial to address organizational skill gaps with the introduction of new technologies. From the employee perspective, the 2017 Cegos Barometer shows that, while 99% of French employees believe it is important to train throughout life, only 28% of them consider vocational training to be relevant for companies (Institut YouGov study).
Develop Strategic Social Skills
With the reality of declining employee engagement and increasing turnover, a direct consequences of dissatisfaction with professional training, companies must take the lead in developing the social and situational skills that will ensure their success in a changing environment.
Although the workplace is changing to be increasingly digital, this doesn’t limit employers to “hard skills” but also opens the door for “soft skills” training, which provides long term personal and professional development for employees. In a recent survey conducted by RegionJobs, 82% of the 6,790 respondents (324 recruiters and 6466 candidates) voted that life skills are the most important recruitment criteria. This finding was supported by a study completed by the Employment Guidance Council, confirming the importance of socio-emotional skills — such as self-control, problem solving and perseverance — for the emerging and evolving professions.
Unleashing the Company’s Potential by Unlocking the Potential of Employees
In the same survey from RegionJobs, the findings go on to that “life skills while considered crucial, recruiters still tend to be more flexible with them”. This is similar to the rationalization that occurs when people on a diet “cheat”, a common example of cognitive dissonance.
On the other hand, it is imperative for companies to rethink both recruitment and training. Employees need to be assured that the training provided will enable them to develop professionally by addressing both hard and soft skills. While employer-sponsored training will empower employees to become active participants in their development, while benefiting from the current political and legislative incentives, such as training tax benefits.
Rely on New Training Methods
With improvements to digital learning tools, learner engagement has increased through a personalized approach that takes the individual’s personality and motivations into account. Through having engaged learners, organizations are able to manage training programs upstream and develop skills from within their current organization, allowing them to remain competitive while retaining their existing workforce.
Although the positive impact of these tools is apparent at the macro level, it’s no secret that digital learning solutions can be costly to implement. So, can we evaluate the monetary return on our investment? In looking at IBM’s study on the ROI of training they estimated they were able to save nearly $200 million after implementing an e-learning strategy. Furthermore, through a study conducted by the American Society for Training and Development, it was found that an adapted training program improves employee income by 218%.
Changing working environments and attitudes
As new work environments emerge in the digital age, organizations must encourage new behaviours to facilitate learning — such as, manager engagement for communication of objectives, valuing efforts and rewarding success. It’s also critical to review the company’s decision-making processes and ensure it allows for autonomy, while providing flexibility for new initiatives or innovation.
In looking at soft skills, we’re promoting that it is necessary for employers to promote learning for individuals, which implies a de facto — or inherent — change in management style, allowing for more freedom for both managers and employees.
Sources:
- La formation professionnelle en France, est-elle prête pour l’avenir?, OECD, Fev 2019
- La formation professionnelle en 2017, Observatoire Cegos, Oct 2017
- Turnover Report, SHRM 2019
- Salon du Travail et de la Mobilité Professionnelle, CP, 17 Jan 2019
- Enquête : comment recrute-t-on en 2017?, Priscilla Gout, Sep 2017
- Cognitive dissonance, Talentobe Certification, Talentobe, 2018
- Automatisation, numérisation et emploi, Conseil d’orientation pour l’emploie, tome 2: l’impact sur les compétences, Sep 2017
- LOI n° 2018–771 du 5 septembre 2018 pour la liberté de choisir son avenir professionnel, Legifrance
- The Value of Training, IBM Corporation, 2014