Employee Engagement | Fostering Talent Engagement Through Collaborative Strategy Development

In the current landscape of "The Great Attrition," attracting and retaining talent has become a formidable challenge for many industries. Acknowledging this, organizations are increasingly recognizing the pivotal role of participative strategy development not only in enhancing strategy effectiveness and execution but also as a potent tool for attracting and engaging top-tier talent. In this article, I explore the concept of participative strategy development, its various approaches, and the significant impact it can have on HR's role in talent management.

What is participative strategy development?

Participative strategizing is a departure from traditional top-down approaches. It emphasizes involving a broader spectrum of individuals from different organizational levels in the strategy development process right from the outset. This inclusivity can take various forms, such as a whole-system approach, a representation approach with a diverse core team, or a structural approach with continuous feedback mechanisms.

Examples of Participative Approaches:

1. Whole System Approach: Imagine gathering representatives from various departments, including frontline employees, middle managers, and executives, in a strategy development workshop. This holistic approach ensures a diverse range of perspectives and insights are considered.
2. Representation Approach: Establish a core team with representatives from different functional areas and include peripheral groups for input. For instance, assembling a team consisting of marketing, finance, and operations managers, supplemented by input from customer service representatives and IT specialists.
3. Structural Approach: Implement feedback and feedforward routines throughout the year, creating a system for employees at all levels to contribute their ideas and insights. This could involve regular surveys, focus groups, or digital platforms for ongoing collaboration.

How does participative strategy development add to HR’s impact?

1. Making a Contribution:A core driver of human behavior is the idea of doing something meaningful. Of making a contribution. A participative approach to strategizing directly taps into this. By involving people and genuinely asking them for their input, they experience that they matter beyond just doing their jobs. It shows you appreciate people above and beyond their specific skills, for who they are and what they think.Example: By involving employees in the early stages of strategy development, a software development company encouraged its developers to contribute ideas on improving project management processes. This not only enhanced the strategy but also instilled a sense of value among the developers.
2. Learning and Development:Involving people in the strategy development process provides them with a context to grow. When being challenged to think about the strategically relevant aspects of their job, unit, or role, people learn to think more strategically beyond just the operational day-to-day work they do. Furthermore, in addition to this learning-by-doing aspect, a participative approach to strategy also works great with additional directed strategy training—at all levels.Example: A manufacturing firm incorporated a participative approach to strategy development, challenging employees to think strategically about their roles. This not only provided a learning-by-doing experience but also complemented ongoing strategy training programs.
3. Sense of Community:Participative strategy allows you to co-create strategy. When HR does not impose strategy on people, but codevelops it with and by them, it increases their people’s sense of belonging. After all, they have created the strategy together with their colleagues and managers. The strategy will also be less sensitive to silo-thinking, further enhancing the sense of community.Example: A financial services organization embraced participative strategy development, leading to a co-created strategy that reduced departmental silos. Employees felt a stronger sense of belonging as they were active contributors to the organization's overarching goals.

The downsides of participative strategy development?

Despite the proven benefits, objections to participative strategizing often revolve around fears of process slowdowns, increased politics, and resistance. However, research consistently shows that these concerns are unfounded, with participative strategies often speeding up decision-making, reducing resistance, and resulting in bold and effective strategies.

How to get started

To initiate a shift toward participative strategy development, HR professionals can take practical steps within their sphere of influence. For example:

1. Embrace Participative Strategizing Internally: Develop HR strategies using a participative approach to showcase its effectiveness.
2. Introduce Strategic Idea Gathering Mechanisms: Implement mechanisms under the umbrella of leadership development to collect employees' strategic ideas and insights.

A participative strategy development approach not only enhances strategic outcomes but also serves as a powerful tool for talent engagement. HR leaders can play a pivotal role in championing this shift, gradually transforming organizational cultures and unlocking the full potential of collaborative strategy development.