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NATO TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENTWORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

Intensive HRM Training Day

Dr. Eric WelchHead, Talent Management and

Organizational DevelopmentNATO HQ

HR Vision

HR Mission

NATO International Staff attracts, retains and develops a diverse and flexible cadre of highly qualified staff who can adapt to and deliver on the evolving priorities of the Alliance.

To serve as a strategic business partner by providing efficient and effective HR leadership, expertise, products and results.

NATO IS Excellence

HR Leadership

Staff Diversity and

Culture

Efficiency and Planning

Leveraging Change

Recruit the Right Talents

Evolve Training & Development Programs

Align and Manage Performance

Create Flexible Employment Framework

Balance Retention and Rotation

Enable Internal Mobility

Increase Geographic Diversity

Advance Gender Balance

ClarifyEmployment Mix

Increase Employee Engagement

Clarify Manpower Targets and Priorities

Validate IS Grade Levels

Continue Vacancy Prioritization

Finalize NNHQ Support Staff Design

Identify New Ways of Working

Develop Training for NNHQ Transition

Prepare HR Business Processes for NNHQ

Right Peoplein the

Right Jobs

EasierHR Decisions

Engaged & Representative

Workforce

Valuefor

Money

BetterService Delivery

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Describe the profile

Identify the person

Train/ Develop the

person

Design the posts

Human Resource Management Process

Strategy and Requirements

Performance (Organizational and personal)

Talent Management

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Director HR

Policy and Strategy Coordination Staff Services

Management and Organizational

Support

Recruitment

Talent Management and

Organizational Development

HR Advisers

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“Professional Development”??

What is it?Why do it?

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What is Professional Development?

• Information sessions• Skills training• Preparation for future roles and

responsibilities

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Why do Professional Development?

• Attract people to join• Make people more effective in their current

jobs• Prepare them for promotion• Reward them for good performance

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Professional Development at NATO

• Our areas of responsibility– Primarily for HQ International Staff– Some NATO-wide elements

• “Typical” staff profile– Fairly high average tenure in job– More likely to be “experts” than “generalists”

• Other NATO providers– The NATO school

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What matters to us in Professional Development

• Focus primarily on skills training– Some information sessions– Some future-oriented development

• Focus is primarily to make people more effective in their current jobs– Elements of attraction and organizational

reputation• Training participation is generally voluntary

ME

Objectives: I will set them with my manager

Mid-term: we will review progress

Annually: I will be evaluated on my work and on ….

My Competencies

And if I want OR I need, I can further develop my Competencies………….

Competenciestraining

NATO’s Objectives & Needs

My Post Description

My Languages

My ITBecause of

different job families and work levels

Language Courses

IT Training

NATO Executive Development Programme

Pre-deployment training

ManagementDevelopment Programme

Senior Circle

Leadership Journey

My Result Areas

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Professional Development Areas at NATO

• Job-specific training• Competency-focused common training• Languages• Pre-deployment• Managers• Leaders• Senior leaders• NATO-wide Executive Development Program

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"Job-specific" - Distributed

funding -managed by

Divisions

"Common" -Centrally funded -

managed by HR

NATO-wide Training Awards -

managed by IS HR

Professional Development Budget

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Job-specific Training

• Translation training for translators• Firefighting training for firefighters• IT training for IT professionals• Finance training for finance professionals• Legal training for legal advisors

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Competency Focused Training

• Achievement• Analytical Thinking• Change Leadership• Clarity and Accuracy• Conceptual Thinking• Customer Service

Orientation• Developing Others• Empathy

• Flexibility • Impact and Influence• Initiative• Leadership• Organizational Awareness• Organizational

Commitment• Self-Control• Teamwork

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Language Training

• NATO has 2 official languages: English and French

• Group classes for all levels • Also have training for languages of strategic

interest– Russian– Arabic

• Progress should be noted during Annual Review Appraisal

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- NATO civilian staff deployed to volatile areas

- Adequate preparation required- Mandatory hostile environment

training- Cultural awareness, first aid, etc.

Pre-deployment Training

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Training: Managerial and Leadership

• Manager’s Charter:– Attract Staff– Develop Staff– Monitor and Promote Performance – Foster Continual Improvement

• Senior Circle• Leadership Journey• Management Development Program• NATO-wide Executive Development Program

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Senior Circle

• Membership by invitation of the Deputy Secretary General

• Target audience: ASGs and DASGs• Discusses hot topics: latest thinking and

trends from across and outside NATO• Gives opportunities to further hone

leadership and management skills

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• Format: Info Sessions or Luncheons with guest speakers

• When: Ongoing throughout year, responding to the needs of senior management

Past events:- “Understanding and Leveraging Cultural Differences” - “Chairing Skills” - “Recruiting for Success” - Guest speakers from private and public sector

Future event:- “The Role of Competencies”

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Leadership Journey

• Open to all senior managers• Series of 1-day sessions (modular approach)• Results in certification• Example workshops:

“Understanding Yourself as a Leader”“The Changing Global Environment and

What it Means for NATO”“Enhancing Relationships and Gaining

Commitment”“Leading and Innovating in an International

Public Sector Environment”

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Management Development Program (MDP)

• Required for new managers • Available to existing managers• Five modules over 12 months• Registration anytime, through Training Portal

Objective:

Fashion a common, professional, managerial culture at NATO HQ.

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• Assessed on their progress and development in their Annual Review

• Desired result: Ensures that junior and middle managers gain and develop appropriate managerial skills and competencies

Module 5 Change

Management Module 4 Advanced

Communications

Module 3 Motivational Leadership

Module 2 NATO

Management Tools

Module 1 Fundamentals

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NATO-wide Executive Development Program (NEDP)

• The first and only NATO-wide development initiative

• 10-month program • Junior and mid-level managers / potential

leaders• Currently in the 5th cycle

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• Build networks • Strengthen NATO’s corporate

identity and core values • Foster a common culture • Develop leadership and managerial skills • Improve career development prospects

= Benefits for the Organization AND the individual

Goals of the NEDP

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Participation

• 24 civilian participants per year • A2 – A5 grades (Mid to Upper Management)• NATO-wide• Self-submission by individuals

– Endorsement by their managers– Selection by senior management panel

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Projects

• Sponsored by senior leaders• Conducted and implemented by NEDP

participants• Contribute towards NATO Objectives

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Challenges in Professional Development

• Getting more value for our investments– Ensure relevance (and interest/participation)– Transfer of training/skills– Skills database– Reusable training– Ensure provider quality– In-source training– Link to other initiatives (e.g., assessment centers)

• NEDP Alumni network• Mentoring and coaching• Keep up with changing needs (e.g., new HQ)

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Workforce management

• “Talent” Management• Right person in the right place at the right

time• How to know the right person?

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Staff Skills Database

• Purpose: mechanism to expand capabilities in times of crisis (Surge Capacity) using existing resources from other divisions

• What it is: individual profiles completed and maintained by staff members – focus on the skills not used in the normal job

• Where: HR Service Portal• Additional benefit: ad-hoc support for short-

term help on other projects and initiatives

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Identify skills

• Inputs: – Education and Languages– Skill Categories, Areas, and Topics– Professional Interests– References– Career Goals and Expectations (HR eyes only)– Menus and free text

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Meet needs

• Structured + Free text search options• Production of CV-type reports• Open to all staff, on request• Result: 180 unique visitors, 60 profiles, 70

searches within 30 days of implementation• Next steps: Increase usage, expand to other

NATO bodies, create Surge Capacity Pool

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Eric Welch, Ph.D.North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Welch.eric@hq.nato.int+32 (0)2 707 3750

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Recent Professional Development Initiatives

• Relevance– Training Needs Analysis– Identify the need, not the solution– Competency gap analysis– Skills database

• Expanding our audience and area of impact– Sharing costs– Standardizing practices

• Managerial involvement in staff development35

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Recent Professional Development Initiatives

• Managerial development• Tools for administration• Measurement and metrics• New formulations (e.g., length of training)• “Talent Management”

– What is “talent”?– Links to other HR areas (e.g., recruitment,

performance management)

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