HUMAN
RESOURCE
OPTIMIZATION

Companies and organizations spend millions of dollars every year training people. It has long been assumed that anyone can be trained to do anything if they work hard enough at it. In terms of the Nature-Nurture debate, people mistakenly assumed that nurture rules and that anyone could be trained if given proper methods and technology. We now understand that all workers do not take equally well to all training.

It is time to rethink the existing “human resource development paradigm.” The Center for Applied Cognitive Studies’ approach is called “Human Resource Optimization” (HRO). It means understanding the skills required for a job, understanding an employee’s strengths and weaknesses, and then finding a way to leverage the strengths and minimize the weaknesses to get the job done effectively.

When an employee’s performance must be improved, the informed manager puts Human Resource Optimization to work:

• Define the competencies required for the job. For example, competencies associated with sales are: competitiveness, presentation skills, self-confidence, and optimism.
• From research studies, the Center for Applied Cognitive Studies knows which traits support each competency.
• Assess the employee’s performance on these competencies using a 360° or other appraisal tool.
• Use the WorkPlace Big Five Profile to assess the employee’s traits.
• Identify the gap between the ideal trait infrastructure for each competency and the person’s actual trait infrastructure (capacity).
• For each combination of Performance and Trait Capacity per Competency, Human Resource Optimization has strategies to employ: Develop, Develop with Support, Caution, Capitalize and Compensate strategies.

The WorkPlace Big Five Profile Report provides 5 supertrait scores and 23 subtrait scores.  An optional report, called the Trait Capacitor Report, estimates an individual’s energy capacity for various competencies.  Once an individual’s basic traits are analyzed, scores go through another level of analysis to estimate capacity to perform competencies.  These estimates are based on research studies.  In edition to a score, the estimates of capacity are also described along a continuum: Energizing, Natural, Somewhat Natural, Draining to Outside Comfort Zone.  This Trait Capacitor Report provides the capacity portion of HRO.

Important Note: These capacity scores do not reflect performance.  The WorkPlace does not measure performance.  It only measures the trait energy one has to support a competency.  It is possible to perform a competency very well and still have a capacity score of Draining or Outside Comfort Zone.  What the capacity score reflects is one’s natural trait energy for that competency only.  Looking at one’s trait capacity along with one’s performance level gives an idea of what HRO strategy to employ with the competency.