For International Turnkey Systems (ITS), a leading provider of integrated IT solutions across several countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, there is a strong emphasis on ongoing learning and performance. Headquartered in Kuwait with a workforce of more than 2 800 highly skilled professionals, the company attributes its more than 30 years of success to its employees.
Since investing in Halogen Software’s suite of talent management solutions, including Halogen eAppraisal™, Halogen e360 Multirater ™, Halogen eSuccession™ and Halogen eLearning Manager™, International Turnkey Systems has experienced the following benefits:
- Enhanced business efficiencies across entities in several countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa
- Elimination of onerous manual and administrative tasks, enabling HR and managers to focus on higher value activities related to employee performance and development
- Increased alignment between competency measures and goals with corporate objectives
- Better management of compensation budgets and a clearer understanding of how pay for performance is allocated across the organization
Legacy Framework Leaves Productivity Gaps
The high tech industry is in an ongoing state of evolutionary flux. With continual technological advances, organizations such as ITS need to ensure that they are able to attract the best and brightest talent; it can be a challenge to find and retain these employees.
As an IT leader, International Turnkey Systems is no stranger to this challenge, which makes talent management a key priority to help the organization build and maintain a world class workforce. To track performance, ITS had been using a competency matrix with each position evaluated using a different rating system. Conducted quarterly, the appraisal process was not only complicated but also challenging to administer and manage.
“We noticed that performance wasn’t necessarily top of mind on a day-to-day basis and that some employees tended to work harder the closer we got to the end of the fiscal year,” explains Khaled Faraj Al-Saeid, Managing Director and General Manager for ITS. “We needed to shift our mindset so that performance and achieving goals was top of mind throughout the year.”
Talent Management Programmed into Corporate Language
While ITS had a talent management process in place, they did not see any real change in the behavior of employees or managers, and recognized they needed an automated talent management solution to help derive value from the process.
After attempts to use a performance management module from another provider proved unsuccessful, the organization opted to look for a best of breed solution. Representatives from IT and HR guided criteria and research efforts, narrowing the selection down to a handful of vendors.
“We began to look at Halogen eAppraisal and liked what the solution offered in terms of meeting our needs; we then discovered how Halogen eLearning Manager could be linked into our HRMS system and that was an added selling point,” says Ehab Omran, Director of HR for ITS. “Costs were competitive and the solutions easy to use. I had lengthy discussions with a Halogen Software customer in Qatar and another in Abu Dhabi and quickly realized Halogen was a great fit for our needs.”
Another aspect that impacted the final decision was the software’s ability to handle heavy loads. Although ITS employs fewer than 3 000 people, quarterly performance and project appraisals generate about 14 000 appraisals per year. “Halogen Software has been able to handle our high volume of appraisals without any problems,” states Balasubramanian Muthukkaruppan, Manager – Talent Management for ITS.
Integration Engineered to Launch Internationally
With a fiscal year that runs from October to September, ITS selected the Halogen suite in late September 2009 with a view to conducting the first series of quarterly appraisals in January 2010.
The solution was rolled out across the company’s various entities in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. To help manage the process, a user guide featuring customized screen captures was distributed to everyone. Managers and team leaders attended training sessions to get acquainted with the process. Employees picked up on the system with ease, commenting how the solution was simple and easy to use.
“In implementing a system to be used by all employees, operating in various countries, naturally the pressure was high,” says Balasubramanian. “As an IT company we know how difficult it can be. My IT colleagues have been impressed that this implementation went so smoothly. Life is much simpler now.”
Indicators Point to Middle East Domain Dominance
Since rolling out the solution over a year ago, ITS has already been able to better assess performance and identify learning requirements. Ehab Omran explains. “We are able to be much more competitive when it comes to attracting and retaining talent, and we have much more insight into where learning and development activities are required. In these ways, Halogen Software is helping us to build a world class workforce.”
With Halogen Software, HR and managers at ITS have powerful tools to help them manage the quarterly review process, reducing both the time and money involved in the process. Furthermore, with clear and measurable appraisals in place, everyone has an understanding of pay for performance including how quarterly incentives are allocated to employees. The end result for ITS has been better control of the compensation budget and clear guidelines on quarterly incentive spending for managers.
Additionally, according to Balasubramanian, Halogen eLearning Manager makes training registration seamless. “With employees in different locations it was cumbersome to get forms to the training administrators, the training administrators to register employees and then get back to them through email. Now the entire process is managed through our Halogen Software system, making it so much simpler for everyone.”
Going forward, ITS plans to implement both the Halogen eSuccession™ and Halogen e360 Multirater ™ modules. Ehab Omran elaborates, “By partnering with Halogen Software, we are able to grow our talent management program over time, at a pace that suits both our changing needs and budget.”
“When we started out, we were looking for a tool that would streamline the process and help us derive more value from talent management, while being cost effective and simple to use,” explains Balasubramanian. “Halogen Software has met and exceeded all of our expectations. As an IT company, we know the importance of having a partner that is responsive and communicative. We are extremely positive across the organization about the solution and our experience.”
Try Halogen eAppraisalTM, Free with No Obligations
