The KPI Institute has announced the Employee of the Month awardees for the first quarter of 2022.

The TKI People Awards series features the employees and teams recognized by The KPI Institute for going above and beyond expectations, excelling as team players, and creating a tremendous impact on the company.

Get to know the seven recipients of the Employee of the Month award in January, February, and March. Find out what they think about the recognition and the best career lessons they have learned so far.

Employee of the Month: January 2022

 

Name: Carmen Sardean

Position: Accounting Specialist

Division: Support Division

 

What does receiving the Employee of the Month award mean to you?

Carmen: It is a pleasant surprise and a great boost in motivation. I am grateful for the appreciation of my colleagues.

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far at TKI?

Carmen: After years of working on my own, at TKI I am learning teamwork.

When you’re faced with a challenge at work, how do you find a solution?

Carmen: Usually, I need time to detach myself and make space for new perspectives and approaches. Discussing with others helps a lot in bringing clarity and finding better ways.

What would be the three main career lessons that you have learned thus far?

Carmen: Small improvements made with consistency lead to meaningful increases over time. I need to continuously upgrade my skills to keep up with the dynamic work environment. Also, it is so important to take care of my inner state and well-being because it affects a lot of my performance at work.

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Name: Syadza Andini

Position: Research Program Coordinator, Senior Research Analyst for Center for Relationships Science

Division: ILMS

 

What does receiving the Employee of the Month award mean to you?

Syadza: The ephemeral nature of a startup distinguishes it from others. It helps employees accept, manage, and overcome problems.  Therefore, receiving this title gave me a sense of achievement for what I did for the organization, and the team was not left unnoticed.

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far at TKI?

Syadza: Being recognized as an employee of the month and getting promoted to Research Program Coordinator are my favorite accomplishments so far at TKI.

When you’re faced with a challenge at work, how do you find a solution?

Syadza: I work with people of different ages, backgrounds, and cultures. When I am faced with a challenge at work, I seek advice from my team, and they have been great. I love working with my team in ILMS.

What would be the three main career lessons that you have learned thus far?

Syadza: First main career lesson that I have learned is to appreciate even the smallest achievement or progress. Second, developing relationships is an important part of doing business. Every big idea deserves a team to make it happen. Lastly, it is great to be busy, productive, and successful. But you need to be healthy to keep up with the pace.

Employee of the Month: February 2022

 

Name: Nadiyah Afifah

Position: Recruitment Specialist

Division: Support Division

 

What does receiving the Employee of the Month award mean to you?

Nadiyah: It is a great appreciation from this company and my colleagues, an affirmation to grow, and a confirmation of the impacts I tried to create with my work. I have tried my best to contribute to the productivity of this company, and it is nice that my contribution is acknowledged. This recognition gives me a new spirit to be more productive, innovative, and not merely focused on the assigned tasks because I believe everyone can bring a new color to this company.

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far at TKI?

Nadiyah: I managed to execute the project of online onboarding for the new hires. We usually spend 1.5 hours presenting to our new joiners, but now, we have applied this procedure to our internal LMS system. It is a great introduction to the newbies about what we are working on. Every new hire can now access their onboarding course in Lerero. Also, recruiters can allocate their time to more productive work because they only need 20 minutes of discussion with new joiners. 

This project is far from perfect, but it has been helping us a lot as recruiters. Hopefully, the new hire adjusts their induction speed based on their learning abilities. It was exciting to work with different stakeholders to make this project happen. 

When you’re faced with a challenge at work, how do you find a solution?

Nadiyah: I believe that proactivity matters a lot. I always try to connect with everyone and discuss with them every time I have something I did not know or when I am facing a challenge. My colleagues have been supportive, and I am also trying to do the same. I found honesty works as well. Acknowledging we might make mistakes will help us to grow to be better. 

What would be the three main career lessons that you have learned thus far?

Nadiyah: Proactivity and curiosity matter. Whatever the challenges are, we can always research things. Also, there are always people we can discuss our challenges with. But we need to have the willingness to do those. For me, work is more than just earning. It is also the fulfillment of my potential. Connecting with people helps me understand better which aspects I should improve and what new things are surrounding me, especially in a diverse environment like The KPI Institute. Growth always starts with our proactivity and curiosity. 

Set the right mindset. When things get difficult, the right way of seeing them will help us get a different perspective, seeing the opportunity as a chance to learn something new instead of focusing on how hard things are. The right mindset will also help us not feel ashamed of our mistakes but look at them as a better chance to improve.

Putting myself in other people’s shoes is important. As a person involved in HR, it is crucial to develop empathy. Showing more compassion to candidates or colleagues will bring positive impacts and results. Empathy allows us to build social connections and respond appropriately to other people’s needs. 

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Name: Deofelyn Cristobal

Position: Head of Publishing

Division: TKI Research

 

What do you want to do when you are not working? What are your hobbies, passions, or involvement in your community?

Len: A huge factor that fuels my pursuit of work-life balance is that what I am passionate about in my personal life is not too far from what I do at TKI – which focuses on developing and publishing content for research reports and magazines. I usually unwind by reading books, writing poems, and watching movies. I still consider these activities as learning opportunities – just less structured and more relaxed. They help me slow down and at the same time replenish my well of creativity, which is required at work every day.

What do you appreciate most about working at The KPI Institute?

Len: While the company is known for the certifications it offers to professionals and organizations worldwide, I am grateful for the opportunities that TKI provides to its own people in terms of expanding their skills and knowledge. Personally, I appreciate the fact that there is always something new to do. There are opportunities to explore ideas, gain new skills, discover and utilize new systems, and collaborate with people from different backgrounds.

What are you looking forward to in terms of your new projects, collaborations, and role here at TKI?

Len: I am excited about trying out new forms of media in terms of delivering our content. I would also like to widen the distribution of our output so more people can benefit from the research that we do. 

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Name: Kathina Aninditya

Position: Research Analyst

Division: ILMS

 

What does receiving the Employee of the Month award mean to you?

Kathina: It is like a reward for me. It was a great feeling to receive the Employee of the Month, and I am very thankful to my team for their acknowledgment. I believe that it’s not only me, but every one of us deserves this title since we all work together.

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far at TKI?

Kathina: My favorite accomplishment so far at TKI is developing the framework of Personal Resilience.

When you’re faced with a challenge at work, how do you find a solution?

Kathina: When I am faced with problems, I try to find the solutions first by searching for information that could help. However, if I still can not solve them, I turn to my colleagues in the research team and discuss my challenges with them. If needed, I ask for more insights from others such as from ID and marketing team. After that, I will organize all the opinions and analyze them until I find a satisfying solution. Sometimes, I even take a break from the issues and face them again with a more objective “head.” It will allow me to use a new approach in solving the problems.

What would be the three main career lessons that you have learned thus far?

Kathina: The first career lesson I have learned was about the importance of communication. Communication is about conveying information through exchanged thoughts, ideas and feelings. However, since communication involves more than one person, multiple interpretations of a message can happen if there is no clarity during the communication process. Effective and assertive communication is needed for a team to have the same understanding and work collaboratively towards the same goal.

The second lesson is still related to the first one. Even if information is being relayed correctly, it is possible that people forget and get lost in the middle of doing the project. This is where follow-ups with each other and writing things in notes are important. It will help us get back on the right track together.

The third lesson would be about caring for others. We all work together, face similar issues, and are in the same working environment, so we experience more or less the same thing. It is very probable that we are feeling the same thing. Even when it’s not the case, only we understand the circumstances better than outsiders. Therefore, caring for and being cared for by team members play a vital role in a workplace. 

The role of taking care and being cared for would be related to our well-being, productivity, resilience, happiness, and our private life as a person, a partner, a family member, or a parent. So, we will not only succeed in promoting life management to the public but also in our own lives.

Employee of the Month: March 2022

 

 

Name: Daniela Vuta

Position: Business Research Analyst

Division: TKI Research

 

What does receiving the Employee of the Month award mean to you?

Daniela: I am very honored and grateful for being part of a great team, and this nomination confirms, once again, how important it is to have both the support and the recognition of your team leader and colleagues.

What’s your favorite accomplishment so far at TKI?

Daniela: Daniela: Being part of the project team who developed the “State of Strategy Management Practice Report – 2021” is my favorite accomplishment so far. As a Senior Business Research Analyst, I had the pleasure to coordinate this primary international research study conducted by The KPI Institute from November to December 2021.

When you’re faced with a challenge at work, how do you find a solution?

When a challenge arises, I always try to figure out the real size of the problem because what I see as challenging might have a simple solution. Therefore, I dive deep into the problem, address the situation from different perspectives, brainstorm solutions, and look for feedback. When I feel overwhelmed, I always seek assistance from my team or my manager, who are always there to support me.

What would be the three main career lessons that you have learned thus far?

Daniela: Three main career lessons I have learned: be supportive, encourage, and provide meaningful feedback; ask for feedback and be open-minded in receiving criticism; and there is always something to improve or to learn. 

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The last awardee in the month of March is Adiela Misan, an Account Specialist from the Finance Department, Support Division. Though she was not able to participate in the interview, she wants to extend her sincere gratitude to her colleagues for recognizing her hard work.

“I appreciate this recognition. Knowing that my work is acknowledged and appreciated by my colleagues gave me a pleasant feeling. I thank them for the understanding and support shown whenever I needed it,” said Adiela.

 

The KPI Institute (TKI) recently caught up with Kevin Hartman, Google’s Chief Analytics Evangelist, to discuss how data is changing the way organizations develop their strategy and improve their performance.

Below is an excerpt of the interview, which will be published in the next issue of Performance Magazine – Print Edition.

TKI: How important is data today to businesses and organizations?

Hartman: It’s really at the center of everything now, and not just [in] business, but also private life and public sector life and everything in between. It’s data [that] should play a role in every decision that an organization is making — to make them more effective, more efficient… Data and [the] collection of data should play a role in any organization’s operations. It is really at the center of everything that companies are doing today, at least those that are successful.

TKI: What do you think are the challenges that organizations are facing in terms of using data or maybe attempting to use data?

Hartman: Ohh, there are many. You know, from organizations who just don’t have the digital and data maturity — meaning they lack the people, the processes, the technologies to really collect and utilize data. We see that as an enormous challenge. [There are] organizations [that] just haven’t made the investment necessary either because they don’t believe in the return. They don’t want to spend the resources, whatever that is.

But that presents an enormous challenge. Another is just the idea of organizations lacking the kind of leadership that is required to get that organization invested in data and its use, and moving the organization behind a mindset that says data is going to be important to us and we’re going to use data to drive decisions.

…I’d like to say measurement — today getting that right is a leadership challenge, not a technological one. The technology is there. [What matters is] how the organization [will] embrace that challenge and lead from a position of data being a strength.

TKI: Are there times when you’re able to apply what you do at work to your personal life? For example, are there practices at work that you think that people who are not really in the data world professionally can actually adopt at home or for their day-to-day activities?

Hartman: Well, data is a part of everyone’s life… You don’t have to be the chief analytics evangelist at Google for data to affect you. And so I think there’s a lot of crossover, particularly because people are awakening to the existence of data that they are generating online that others are holding and using. And so I think that there’s great opportunity for consumers to just become more savvy in how that data is used, who’s using it, and why.

And it’s no longer a secret should not be because of regulation. And so it — in that way — can become a bigger part of consumers’ lives.

For me personally, I’m in it all the time. I’m either in my work. In the environment and role. Or I teach at a number of institutions and programs, analytics, and so I am fully immersed in this idea of data and the data field all the time.

And it’s really the ability that I have or the opportunity that I have to be that practitioner and see what’s happening in the public sector and private sector, and then stand in front of a classroom of students with the expectation they have that I can explain that to them and make it accessible is really challenging and it keeps me kind of using both of those roles to strengthen how I perform in each area, right? Like my practitioner role at Google makes me a better teacher. My teaching role makes me a better practitioner at Google. So it’s a very symbiotic relationship for me.

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To dive deeper into our conversation with Hartman, stay tuned for the release of Performance Magazine – Print Edition No. July 2022. Get updates from the LinkedIn page of The KPI Institute.

Editor’s Note: “Innovation Highlights: Advancing Performance with State-of-the-Art Solutions” is an article written by The KPI Institute’s Jr. Management Consultant Andreana Dumitrescu and former Business Research Analyst Agnes Ilyes. This piece was first published in the latest edition of Performance Magazine. 

Embracing innovation is part of upgrading your organization’s performance. It requires building your innovation capability, culture, and management as well as getting inspiration from your environment. Here are some ideas to get you started.

Become a Citizen-Developer

Low-code development platforms have a revolutionary role, increasing the performance of software developers, accelerating application delivery, and simplifying complex tasks. At the same time, low-code and no-code tools for programming allow anyone without experience in the domain to create applications or systems, and these users are called citizen-developers. 

Low-code development platforms can automate time-consuming processes, allow employees to use visual and templated workflows, and make technology products reach the market faster. This leads to efficiency, new levels of growth, and great business value. However, those who need customized solutions may still need to use high-code platforms. While users may no longer need to learn coding, no-code platforms are expensive and may not appeal to small businesses. 

Using Drones in Performance Management

In the construction industry, drones are used to monitor employee productivity, collecting real-time data for organizations and giving them a competitive edge. The system gives them the ability to monitor people and activities and gather information fast. This information can be about whether a project is completed on time and on budget, spotting unauthorized use of or damage to the employer’s property, employee safety, human error, and labor costs. Drones can record photos and videos, and the footage can be easily shared with any device. With real-time access to the progress of a project, managers can determine potential causes of delays and the contribution of employees to the overall business strategy and project success. 

Microlearning as the Future of Workplace Learning

The global microlearning market is expected to reach $3. 8 billion by 2027, according to the report “Global Microlearning Industry” by Reportlinker.com. Microlearning refers to learning delivered in short-form, independent units and typically features personalized videos, tutorials, quizzes, or games. 

The topics of microlearning are the simplified versions of those taught in complex and widely structured learning environments. The shift to remote work and the demand for new skills accelerated the popularity of microlearning. The benefits of microlearning include accessibility, flexibility, and reduced development costs. It attracts workers, especially millennials, who prefer faster and engaging learning sessions, customized, and relaxed to avoid cognitive overload. 

Uber’s T3 B3 Process

When Uber’s employees complained that the company’s traditional performance review was subjective and dwelled too much on employees’ past behavior, the transport company devised a strategy called the T3 B3 Process. T3 B3, which means “top three bottom three,” asks employees to identify their top three qualities and bottom three areas for improvement. Their answers will generate new goals, which are entered into a system accessible to all members of the organization. 

Uber’s new review process highlights development based on job performance. The regular feedback that employees receive are categorized into positive reinforcement or constructive advice. Every week, managers monitor their feedback ratios and balance the two categories.

The Military Adopts the 360-degree Appraisal System to Get Rid of Toxic Leaders

Used by companies like Amazon, IBM, and Netflix, the 360-degree appraisal system will now be integrated into the selection board and assignments processes of the U.S. Marine Corps. It will conduct a pilot program first in 2022 and implement it fully in 2024. This means moving away from solely depending on their fitness reports, which are performance notes from two supervisors. 

The U.S. Marine Corps believes that a 360-degree performance review will help them avoid promoting senior leaders who may not be fit for the positions. By getting the feedback of Marine’s senior officials and subordinates, the organization can detect traits of toxic leadership as well as potential strengths and unidentified weaknesses. 

The 360-degree feedback offers employees regular confidential feedback from multiple viewpoints. This feedback system involves personalized questions and workflows, qualitative feedback, and agile pulse surveys. Moreover, the 360-degree review process emphasizes social reinforcement, encouraging workers to be more open to feedback and adjust their behavior. 

According to Harvard Business Review, initiatives to innovate usually fail and even successful innovators struggle to maintain their performance due to “the lack of an innovation strategy.”

For more than 10 years, The KPI Institute has established a standard in every facet of performance management through tailored KPI-based solutions. Join the Certified Innovation Performance Professional Live Online course on 18-22 July 2022 to learn how to link innovation to your organization’s strategy and goals in achieving excellence in performance, or get certified in IP Professional. For further details, visit our website.