Welcome to CPO Rising’s all-new feature, the Future of Work Influencer series, which will highlight innovative voices in the evolving world of work. This exciting new series will be a go-to spot for progressive thoughts on how technology, transformational thinking, and revolutionary ideas are changing how work gets done. Be sure to check out past articles in this series here.
This week’s Future of Work Influencer article features a conversation with John Healy, Vice President and Managing Director, Office of the Future of Work at Kelly Services.
Christopher J. Dwyer: John, thanks for joining us. It’s always a pleasure to chat with you. Tell us a little bit about your background and how you became a part of this industry.
John Healy: Thank you, Chris, I enjoy these conversations, as well! I’ve been with Kelly for 26 years, but my role has varied throughout. I’ve had internal gigs every three years or so, ranging from field operations, to sales and account management, to analytics and product development, to M&A activity; I even spent some time seconded into the services procurement organization for one of our clients. Throughout all of this time, the one constant has been a focus on executing something new: solving a business problem that we hadn’t previously addressed. Today, that means focusing on the “Future of Work” and helping both Kelly and our customers (workers and clients) embrace what’s next.
CJD: You and I chatted last summer on the Contingent Workforce Weekly podcast about a variety of topics, including the prevalence of artificial intelligence. This seems to be the most predominant technology in any discussion of “innovation.” What should companies really be looking for when they sit down to formulate how exactly AI will be integrated into their systems and strategies?
JH: AI is a really broad topic; in an effort to simplify the complexity, I tend to think about AI when trying to discover those activities that machines can help me complete more efficiently or effectively. At the core, we have been trying to solve that business problem since the advent of computers and the internet, but the advances we have made in technology are allowing us to explore so many additional areas where we can apply technology in our daily lives, both as professionals and as consumers. So, to your specific question of what should companies be looking for? They should be constantly identifying the activities and processes that create bottlenecks, or that reduce efficiency, or that create unneeded (or unwanted) complexity.
CJD: There’s so much discussion today around the Future of Work and what it means for businesses across the world. Optimizing how work is done, automating key facets of the enterprise, leveraging new outlets of innovation…how can companies make sense of it all?
JH: Focus on the outcomes and on the people involved in executing the work. Human-centric design (or “design thinking”) is at the center of almost every aspect of “agile” models, and the need for organizations to become more agile has been well-documented. Based on the research we have completed related to the workforce, the workplace, technology, and social norms, we believe that increasing your focus on the expectations of the “consumer” is a great place to start in rethinking and in prioritizing what’s next. While there is undoubtedly a wide set of opportunities to fix individual problems or to add incremental value, there is also a risk of creating unwanted complexity if you don’t also keep an eye on the bigger picture. I’ll offer an example: I was with a company recently who was proud of their agility, citing the number of pilots that they authorized. Fast-forward to today, and they have over 300 processes in their talent acquisition function alone, and now they are realizing that the experience for the talent they are attracting and the managers that are trying to complete work is sub-standard, at best.
For the past 15+ years, companies have been centralizing processes and building systems based on a hierarchical structure, with the express intent of mitigating risk and maximizing value for money. Over the past five years, our consumer experience has been built around a model that focuses on networks and social capital rather than hierarchy and political value. These two worlds are in conflict. The organizations who pivot their approach to focus on the experience of end users – and thus the expectations of their workforce as “consumers” – will have a clear advantage. This is a topic that I have a lot of personal passion about and welcome the opportunity to continue the conversation!
CJD: The MSP model seems to be progressing to meet the evolving needs of the average business. How is Kelly actively paving a path for the next generation of Managed Service Providers? What is the next great source of “value” for solutions like yours?
JH: As you know, we adopted a Talent Supply Chain model many years ago and we have been consistently evolving the model to move beyond the transactional aspects of the “gen-one” MSP to being an increased focus on value creation; how you define value for each customer is subject to where they are on their journey. For too long, the message has been about adding SOW, or direct sourcing, or human cloud, when the more important question is about understanding where an individual company is on their journey and delivering a solution that addresses the near-term value creation opportunities that is also scalable for what’s next. If we step back to the point made earlier and bring the focus to the hiring manager and to the worker, we can re-imagine where new forms of value can be created. Core for most of those end-users is access to the market intelligence to make better decisions: when to use a contractor vs. an internal worker; when to utilize an external gig worker vs. accessing internal talent interested in picking up a “side hustle”; determining when it is a better decision to train an existing workforce vs. securing external assistance; when to engage someone on a time and materials basis vs. when to purchase a fixed outcome.
The exciting part of the evolution that our industry is experiencing, through the expanding capabilities of technology and the maturity of the business models deployed within many clients, is that we are now able to answer more of these questions than ever before; and, when done right, we are able to leverage a collaborative model to genuinely partner with our clients to generate new forms of value.
CJD: You’ve been in the industry for quite some time. When we look back on 2019, what will be its biggest gamechanger in regard to the world of work?
JH: Blockchain. Networks are forming, competitors and broader eco-systems are recognizing the opportunity to collaborate in areas that don’t represent point of competitive IP, or that represent any form of anti-trust concerns, but that bring simplification and value to a system that has become overly complex through the years. Many think this will take 10+ years to become a reality, but I believe when we look back in history, we will see 2019 as the year when a diverse set of organizations came together and identified the critical design elements to reshape the way that people connect with work in ways that genuinely enrich their lives!
Connect with John on LinkedIn, or visit www.kellyservices.com for more information on Kelly Services.
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