Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE: DNB) is a public company headquartered in Short Hills, New Jersey, USA that provides information on businesses and corporations for use in credit decisions, B2B marketing and supply chain management. Often referred to as D&B, the company maintains information about more than 150 million companies worldwide
Dun & Bradstreet traces its history back to July 20, 1841, with the formation of The Mercantile Agency in New York City by Lewis Tappan. The company was formed to create a network of correspondents who would provide reliable, objective credit information. In 1933, The Mercantile Agency merged with competitor R.G. Dun & Company to form today's Dun & Bradstreet. The Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) was invented in 196
As Compensation professionals, we frequently are told that we must raise the pay level for a job, or a manager will be unable to retain and motivate employees. In fact, many other factors bear on an employee’s decision to leave or stay, and how they perform while in the job. One of the best models for explaining much of this variation is job embeddedness. Job embeddedness is defined as, on and off the job, an individual’s (a) links to other people, teams and groups, (b) perception of their fit with their job, organization and community and (c) what they say they would have to sacrifice if they left their job. Research indicates that job embeddedness affects voluntary turnover, performance on the job, and other job-related behaviors. Dr. Sablynski will explain the concept of job embeddedness, and discuss practical implications for human resource practitioners.
The nation's businesses are working to lift themselves out of the long and lingering effects of recession, and employees who were taken for granted during the lean years are poised for exodus -- just as soon as the economy cooperates.
And while talent retention is often overlooked during a down economy, as employers struggle to salvage sales and retain revenue, employers who treat their employees well now will be better prepared during the economic recovery.
"I spend about 50 percent of my time worrying about retention and who's the next person on my team I need to hire," said Kathy Boe, CEO and founder of Boecore, Inc., during a Middle Market Entrepreneurs seminar at the Center for Creative Leadership. "Our leadership team works for our employees -- we treat our employees like customers. And when we treat them the way they want to be treated, they take great care of our customers."
Proper treatment is not merely a matter of paying fair wages and offering great benefits.
"They want to know that you appreciate them -- and that you even know (specifically) what they're doing," Boe said. "I spend a lot of time doing recognition and writing thank-you notes."
Employees also need a work/life balance strategy, said Steve Wychulis, director of corporate development for CEA Technologies Inc.
And one cannot hire employees and then more or less abandon them -- if one expects them to have positive attitudes and perform well.
"If you leave your employees alone -- you don't train, nurture or develop them -- they will drive your car into a ditch for you," Wychulis said, alluding to something he unintentionally did at the age of 5.
Left alone in a Mercedes Benz, he released the emergency brake and rolled the car into a bayou.
One of the best ways to attract and retain quality employees is to invest in them and maintain and teach a company's core values.
"We talk about integrity and our core values each day," Wychulis said. "You must engage the employees at all times -- or they will release the emergency brake on you."
Often the most obvious way to retain quality employees is overlooked.
"Retention begins with recruiting," he said. "If you're going to retain the best people -- you have to hire the best people."
Smaller businesses that don't have human resource departments can use a staffing service to help with the screening and hiring process, but senior executives should not make the mistake of delegating all hiring responsibility to human resources or professional recruiters.
They can delegate the task side, said Roland Smith, senior faculty, at the Center for Creative Leadership, "but executives need to own the people side of human resources."
We believe moving up the “relationship chain” is
critical for organizations. A long-lasting
relationship that converts to strong retention is the
desired results for companies that want to sustain
themselves through good times and bad.
We define the employee relationship chain as:
Stage 1: Share of Opportunity - Contract
Stage 2: Share of Mind - Partnership
Stage 3: Share of Heart - Relationship
These stages have been studied and utilized
extensively in the world of marketing and branding.
We believe it adds equal if not greater value to the
world of employee retention.
When turbulence impacts every part of the
business, how can the organization continue get
back to a “Share of Heart-Relationship” described
by Ed Cohen and Arunav Sinha. How can an
organization motivate its people to recommit their
talents, energies and spirit to rebuild? This is a key
question every organization must answer
concurrent with implementing cost optimization
measures. When we discovered our revenues
were not what we had been told, we immediately
knew we had too many people and that one of the
cost optimization measures would eventually
require us to have many people leave. We
implemented strict cost optimization measures.
It is during these turbulent times that we needed to
rebuild our relationships with employees starting
back at Stage 1: Share of Opportunity. A retention
strategy that quickly shifts people from fright and
flight back to share of opportunity is not only
important, it is tantamount to the future success of
the organization. So, how does an organization
move back up the relationship chain after it is lost?
It can only happen once the organization is
sanitized, meaning all of the people, processes and
other support systems that allowed the crisis to
occur have been eliminated and gaps closed. Then
attention shifts to identifying and responding to
whatever it takes to keep the right people from
leaving the organization.
Employees never want to be told that they are less
important than customers or shareholders! This is
a common mistake for companies experiencing
turbulence. They tend to forget that the equation
for success includes all stakeholders and that all
are equally important. They immediately
implement cost optimization measures and
customer retention measures. Conversations
center on shareholder retention, customer retention
and reputation. They expect more from people
who are not displaced and they expect people to
come to work each day with renewed energy. Not
possible! If the organization demonstrates that
their priorities are 1) customers and shareholders,
2) cost optimization and finally 3) employees, they
will not forget this treatment. This will not result in
renewed share of heart. Employees need to know
their retention is as important to the organization as
customer retention. Of course, it may not be
possible to retain everyone. That said
demonstrating priority for employees, shows the
company is engaging in a share of heart
relationship that will make the reality of the
situation easier for people to understand and to
accept.
Given our commitment to develop future leaders, we place great emphasis on providing associates with appropriate learning and development. In particular, we have:
An induction program that gives you an overall view of Dun & Bradstreet;
Structured on the job training, for the skills to do your job effectively;
Off the job training to help you to continue to develop, professionally and personally; and
An Education Assistance program that can help fund further study.
Career opportunities
As a growing organisation, the key elements of our career development strategy are that:
We actively seek to promote and transfer our best associates;
We continually assess career paths and the options available for our associates; and
Our line managers are trained to facilitate career development discussions with their associates to help find the best way that their people can achieve their, and the organisation's goals.
Southern Cross
Dun & Bradstreet has an agreement with Southern Cross Healthcare to provide outstanding corporate health insurance packages to all associates. Southern Cross provides VIP2+ health insurance with the availability to add on spouses and dependants.
Employee Assistance Program
The Dun & Bradstreet Employee Assistance Program provides a free, anonymous counselling service available as a resource for all Dun & Bradstreet associates. The aim is to assist with the resolution of personal and work related problems, which may affect work performance or quality of life.
As part of our ongoing commitment to the 'Performance Ethic' and to promote, recognise & reward on merit, we have a comprehensive Reward & Recognition Program. Associates of Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) have the opportunity to win awards based on their achievements on a monthly and quarterly basis. Award recipients receive a certificate of achievement and gift cards. Associates that are recognised throughout the year are eligible for the annual award. The award categories are:
Thought Leadership Award
Customer Driven Award
Growth Award
Business Services Associate of the Year
C&IS IR Associate of the Year
C&IS Sales Consultant of the Year
RMO Associate of the Year
BMS Marketing Consultant of the Year
RMS Sales Consultant of the Year
RMS Commercial Account Manager of the Year
RMS Consumer Account Manager of the Year
RMS Commercial Collector of the Year
RMS Collections Centre Collector of the Year
RMS Collector of the Year - New Zealand
Manager of the Year
Dun & Bradstreet traces its history back to July 20, 1841, with the formation of The Mercantile Agency in New York City by Lewis Tappan. The company was formed to create a network of correspondents who would provide reliable, objective credit information. In 1933, The Mercantile Agency merged with competitor R.G. Dun & Company to form today's Dun & Bradstreet. The Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) was invented in 196
As Compensation professionals, we frequently are told that we must raise the pay level for a job, or a manager will be unable to retain and motivate employees. In fact, many other factors bear on an employee’s decision to leave or stay, and how they perform while in the job. One of the best models for explaining much of this variation is job embeddedness. Job embeddedness is defined as, on and off the job, an individual’s (a) links to other people, teams and groups, (b) perception of their fit with their job, organization and community and (c) what they say they would have to sacrifice if they left their job. Research indicates that job embeddedness affects voluntary turnover, performance on the job, and other job-related behaviors. Dr. Sablynski will explain the concept of job embeddedness, and discuss practical implications for human resource practitioners.
The nation's businesses are working to lift themselves out of the long and lingering effects of recession, and employees who were taken for granted during the lean years are poised for exodus -- just as soon as the economy cooperates.
And while talent retention is often overlooked during a down economy, as employers struggle to salvage sales and retain revenue, employers who treat their employees well now will be better prepared during the economic recovery.
"I spend about 50 percent of my time worrying about retention and who's the next person on my team I need to hire," said Kathy Boe, CEO and founder of Boecore, Inc., during a Middle Market Entrepreneurs seminar at the Center for Creative Leadership. "Our leadership team works for our employees -- we treat our employees like customers. And when we treat them the way they want to be treated, they take great care of our customers."
Proper treatment is not merely a matter of paying fair wages and offering great benefits.
"They want to know that you appreciate them -- and that you even know (specifically) what they're doing," Boe said. "I spend a lot of time doing recognition and writing thank-you notes."
Employees also need a work/life balance strategy, said Steve Wychulis, director of corporate development for CEA Technologies Inc.
And one cannot hire employees and then more or less abandon them -- if one expects them to have positive attitudes and perform well.
"If you leave your employees alone -- you don't train, nurture or develop them -- they will drive your car into a ditch for you," Wychulis said, alluding to something he unintentionally did at the age of 5.
Left alone in a Mercedes Benz, he released the emergency brake and rolled the car into a bayou.
One of the best ways to attract and retain quality employees is to invest in them and maintain and teach a company's core values.
"We talk about integrity and our core values each day," Wychulis said. "You must engage the employees at all times -- or they will release the emergency brake on you."
Often the most obvious way to retain quality employees is overlooked.
"Retention begins with recruiting," he said. "If you're going to retain the best people -- you have to hire the best people."
Smaller businesses that don't have human resource departments can use a staffing service to help with the screening and hiring process, but senior executives should not make the mistake of delegating all hiring responsibility to human resources or professional recruiters.
They can delegate the task side, said Roland Smith, senior faculty, at the Center for Creative Leadership, "but executives need to own the people side of human resources."
We believe moving up the “relationship chain” is
critical for organizations. A long-lasting
relationship that converts to strong retention is the
desired results for companies that want to sustain
themselves through good times and bad.
We define the employee relationship chain as:
Stage 1: Share of Opportunity - Contract
Stage 2: Share of Mind - Partnership
Stage 3: Share of Heart - Relationship
These stages have been studied and utilized
extensively in the world of marketing and branding.
We believe it adds equal if not greater value to the
world of employee retention.
When turbulence impacts every part of the
business, how can the organization continue get
back to a “Share of Heart-Relationship” described
by Ed Cohen and Arunav Sinha. How can an
organization motivate its people to recommit their
talents, energies and spirit to rebuild? This is a key
question every organization must answer
concurrent with implementing cost optimization
measures. When we discovered our revenues
were not what we had been told, we immediately
knew we had too many people and that one of the
cost optimization measures would eventually
require us to have many people leave. We
implemented strict cost optimization measures.
It is during these turbulent times that we needed to
rebuild our relationships with employees starting
back at Stage 1: Share of Opportunity. A retention
strategy that quickly shifts people from fright and
flight back to share of opportunity is not only
important, it is tantamount to the future success of
the organization. So, how does an organization
move back up the relationship chain after it is lost?
It can only happen once the organization is
sanitized, meaning all of the people, processes and
other support systems that allowed the crisis to
occur have been eliminated and gaps closed. Then
attention shifts to identifying and responding to
whatever it takes to keep the right people from
leaving the organization.
Employees never want to be told that they are less
important than customers or shareholders! This is
a common mistake for companies experiencing
turbulence. They tend to forget that the equation
for success includes all stakeholders and that all
are equally important. They immediately
implement cost optimization measures and
customer retention measures. Conversations
center on shareholder retention, customer retention
and reputation. They expect more from people
who are not displaced and they expect people to
come to work each day with renewed energy. Not
possible! If the organization demonstrates that
their priorities are 1) customers and shareholders,
2) cost optimization and finally 3) employees, they
will not forget this treatment. This will not result in
renewed share of heart. Employees need to know
their retention is as important to the organization as
customer retention. Of course, it may not be
possible to retain everyone. That said
demonstrating priority for employees, shows the
company is engaging in a share of heart
relationship that will make the reality of the
situation easier for people to understand and to
accept.
Given our commitment to develop future leaders, we place great emphasis on providing associates with appropriate learning and development. In particular, we have:
An induction program that gives you an overall view of Dun & Bradstreet;
Structured on the job training, for the skills to do your job effectively;
Off the job training to help you to continue to develop, professionally and personally; and
An Education Assistance program that can help fund further study.
Career opportunities
As a growing organisation, the key elements of our career development strategy are that:
We actively seek to promote and transfer our best associates;
We continually assess career paths and the options available for our associates; and
Our line managers are trained to facilitate career development discussions with their associates to help find the best way that their people can achieve their, and the organisation's goals.
Southern Cross
Dun & Bradstreet has an agreement with Southern Cross Healthcare to provide outstanding corporate health insurance packages to all associates. Southern Cross provides VIP2+ health insurance with the availability to add on spouses and dependants.
Employee Assistance Program
The Dun & Bradstreet Employee Assistance Program provides a free, anonymous counselling service available as a resource for all Dun & Bradstreet associates. The aim is to assist with the resolution of personal and work related problems, which may affect work performance or quality of life.
As part of our ongoing commitment to the 'Performance Ethic' and to promote, recognise & reward on merit, we have a comprehensive Reward & Recognition Program. Associates of Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) have the opportunity to win awards based on their achievements on a monthly and quarterly basis. Award recipients receive a certificate of achievement and gift cards. Associates that are recognised throughout the year are eligible for the annual award. The award categories are:
Thought Leadership Award
Customer Driven Award
Growth Award
Business Services Associate of the Year
C&IS IR Associate of the Year
C&IS Sales Consultant of the Year
RMO Associate of the Year
BMS Marketing Consultant of the Year
RMS Sales Consultant of the Year
RMS Commercial Account Manager of the Year
RMS Consumer Account Manager of the Year
RMS Commercial Collector of the Year
RMS Collections Centre Collector of the Year
RMS Collector of the Year - New Zealand
Manager of the Year
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