Ever since he joined the Central Provident Fund Board (CPFB), Don Yeo has been championing greater employee engagement. The assistant chief executive officer tells Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop how listening to employees has helped the CPFB improve employees' job satisfaction and, ultimately, retention rates.When Don Yeo looked at the results of the Central Provident Fund Board's (CPFB's) Employee Opinion Survey two years ago, he already knew many employees were unhappy. With a booming economy and a tight employment market, a number of them were voting with their feet and leaving. That year, the statutory board's general attrition rate had risen from 12 to 16%. Even more worryingly, the attrition rate for 'key' employees, those in middle management positions or high-potential staff, had jumped from 5 to 12.5%. "We got a lot of feedback from people saying that the organisation wasn't competitive enough salary-wise," Yeo told HRM. "But we didn't need employees to tell us - we only had to look at the attrition rate."
Fast forward two years, and its latest Employee Opinion Survey, conducted by Towers Perrin International Survey Research, is showing a very different organisational climate. The overall employee satisfaction score has improved from 62 to 67%, which compares "quite well" with the national norm of 63%.
The overall attrition rate also fell back to 12% in 2007 and is expected to drop to around 10% this year. Yeo says the attrition rate for 'key' staff has plummeted to 3.7%.
Getting on the right track
Yeo believes that recognising and acting on the implications of the internal survey were crucial in turning the boat around. "This type of survey measures not only the quantitative aspects, but also gives qualitative feedback to help us identify what types of things we need to improve upon," he explains. "It's quite comprehensive and we encourage every one of our staff to participate." More than 90% of staff take part in the research every year.
"I think it's clear that organisations must listen to their employees," Yeo says, adding that employee engagement is not just about keeping employees happy anymore. "You must go beyond that and build up an employee that isn't only committed and motivated to come to work every day but also an employee that's proud to work for the organisation." The pinnacle of achievement occurs when staff begin to convince their friends to work for the organisation. "This is something we're trying to aspire to in terms of engaging employees," Yeo says.
Time for action
At the forefront of the CPFB's turnaround in job satisfaction levels has been an overall review of the compensation and benefits packages. "Towards the end of 2006, we conducted a holistic review of the whole salary framework," he points out. "We significantly improved the financial package that was offered to employees." The changes were implemented gradually over two years so that internal volatility could be minimised. Salaries rose on average by 4% in 2007 and another 6% in 2008, while the CPFB also introduced more flexibility into its enhanced benefits scheme ("E-Ben").
"Before, the scheme was only focused on holiday reimbursement and employees could claim up to $350 of holiday expenses. Under the new E-Ben scheme, employees can also claim for medical insurance and personal development programmes." The annual benefit has also been raised to $400.
Yeo says employees appreciate the opportunity to customise the benefit to fit their needs. "We've found that we've improved very much on the scores for reward and recognition," he adds. "The staff feel that they've been listened to, and we're now a competitive employer."
Leave no stone unturned
Other areas that have shown "marked improvement" over the last two years include change management, employee empowerment and career advancement.
"I think these improvements relate a lot to the way we communicate change and explain policies to our staff," he emphasises. "While before, employees felt that HR wasn't providing enough information to staff, today we're more transparent."
Yeo says he holds regular town hall sessions to directly communicate with employees. "I believe a face-to-face meeting is more effective than sending a staff notice. That's why I've put in the effort of chairing these sessions myself."
CPFB staff also have the opportunity to post suggestions through the organisation's intranet. The 'My Idea' scheme brings in more than 10,000 comments a year.
In terms of improvements in career advancement, Yeo believes this also comes through better communication channels between management and employees. "Whenever there are vacancies, they're always advertised internally first," he explains. "We're also making sure that junior staff that have been in the organisation for some time are given a fair opportunity to move up the corporate ladder to middle management."
Moving forward
The survey definitely shows some improvement in communication across the CPFB, but Yeo says there's always room for further gains. He is looking in particular at the way the organisation communicates with its youngest staff.
"We're trying to open up the culture because we're getting more and more younger entrants from Generation Y," he says. "There's definitely a challenge in terms of managing staff that have been with us for 25 years and new, younger staff. Which is why it's important to create an environment that's open."
"We need to be more receptive to ideas and promote a lot more employee involvement. At the same time, we must make sure we're not alienating employees that have been working with us for a long time." The CPFB is therefore experimenting with new media technologies, using podcasts and vodcasts to communicate with employees on the organisation's intranet.
Yeo also wants to keep on improving supervision standards, making sure supervisors are adequately trained and possess the soft skills necessary to build up a successful team.
"Right now, we have some formal training programmes, but ultimately good leadership comes with experience and sharing," he says. "We're exploring other interventions like 360-degree feedback, mentoring and coaching."
Yeo also wants to keep on improving supervision standards, making sure supervisors are adequately trained and possess the soft skills necessary to build up a successful team.
"Right now, we have some formal training programmes, but ultimately good leadership comes with experience and sharing," he says. "We're exploring other interventions like 360-degree feedback, mentoring and coaching."
