Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry—A Systems Approach (2013) / Chapter Skim
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Building a Susta Workforce in the Transportation In A Systems App inable Public dustry -- roach Module Tailor Effective S into Workforce P 1. trategies ractices
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1-1 Module 1 Contents Module 1: Tailor Effective Strategies into Workforce Practices Content of the Sections 1.1 Recruitment Overview 1-4 1.1.1 Description 1-4 1.1.2 Challenges for Public Transportation 1-5 1.1.3 Impact of Effective Strategies 1-6 1.1.4 Relationship to Image Management 1-7 1.1.5 Effective Recruitment Strategies 1-7 1.2 Retention Overview 1-13 1.2.1 Description 1-13 1.2.2 Challenges for Public Transportation 1-13 1.2.3 Impact of Effective Strategies 1-14 1.2.4 Relationship to Image Management 1-15 1.2.5 Effective Retention Strategies 1-15 1.3 Training and Development Overview 1-20 1.3.1 Description 1-20 1.3.2 Challenges for Public Transportation 1-22 1.3.3 Impact of Effective Strategies 1-23 1.3.4 Relationship to Image Management 1-24 1.3.5 Effective Training and Development Strategies 1-25 1.4 Professional Capacity-Building Overview 1-31 1.4.1 Description 1-31 1.4.2 Challenges for Public Transportation 1-31 1.4.3 Impact of Effective Strategies 1-32 1.4.4 Relationship to Image Management 1-33 1.4.5 Effective Professional Capacity-Building Strategies 1-33 This module presents effective strategies for building a sustainable public transportation workforce. It outlines these strategies based on the four major organizational processes described in the introduction to this guidebook.
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1-2 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach Content of the Sections Each section in this module introduces the organizational process highlighted in that section and includes the following information: • Description – Provides a definition and summary of the organizational process and insights from relevant research, including timely public transportation studies. • Challenges for public transportation – Identifies workforce struggles the public transportation industry faces with respect to the scope of this project.
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R ur a l Strategies Target Audience Job Types System Size* Time to Implement Page Number Jo b C an di da te s C om m u n ity M em be rs Fr o n tli ne St af f Pr of es sio n a l/ Te ch ni ca l S ta ff Su pe rv iso ry / M an ag em en t S ta ff O pe ra tio ns M ai nt en a n ce Pr of es sio n a l/ Te ch ni ca l A dm in ist ra tiv e H um a n R es o u rc es La rg e o r M id -S iz ed U rb a n Sm al l U rb a n R ur al 0– 3 M o n th s 3– 6 M o n th s 7 M o n th s– 1 Y ea r M or e Th a n 1 Y ea r PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING Develop a management university/academy 1-34 Establish regular management retreats, workshops, and leadership events 1-34 Use competency-based leader selection and training 1-35 Implement mentoring/coaching programs for leaders 1-35 Institute a job rotation program 1-36 Use cross-training or shadowing 1-36 Develop formal career paths 1-37 Use individual development plans (IDPs)
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1-4 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach of job position the strategy relates to, the agency size the strategy is most appropriate for, the likely length of time required to implement the strategy, and the page number to locate more information about the strategy within this module. 1.1 Recruitment Overview This section provides an overview of effective recruitment strategies relevant to public transportation organizations.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-5 prevents the public transportation organization from devoting significant resources to onboarding a candidate who may only be interested in short-term employment (Onboarding is the process of bringing new employees into the organization and providing them with the necessary knowledge to be successful members of the organization.) Targeted recruitment can lead to selecting workers who are strong fits with the organization, are likely to feel supported by the organization, and who want, therefore, to remain and be contributing members of the organization for the long term.
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1-6 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach developmental relationships due to a limited number of individuals in senior positions that share similar demographic characteristics. This concern, of course, varies from transit agency to transit agency, as well as by region of the country.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-7 1.1.4 Relationship to Image Management When public transportation organizations implement effective recruitment strategies, the impact reaches beyond attaining a high-quality workforce; the improvements in the workforce also positively affect the transit organization's image. Recruiting quality workers and the associated improvements in the system's effectiveness demonstrate to the public and potential employees that the organization understands the needs of employees and knows how to overcome challenges.
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RECRUITMENT STRATEGY 2 Develop and Implement Internship and Scholarship Programs Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs With the current challenges of recruiting effective employees, public transportation organizations should establish initiatives to prepare for the workforce of the future. Internship and scholarship programs are mutually beneficial ways to provide opportunities for students to engage in public-transportation– related activities and become excited about pursuing careers in the industry.
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RECRUITMENT STRATEGY 4 Recruit Nontraditional Applicants Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs In today's evolving workforce, public transportation organizations may struggle to find a sufficient number of quality employees within the pool of traditional candidates. Thus, it is critical for transportation organizations to implement programs to recruit applicants from groups not traditionally associated with the transportation industry.
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RECRUITMENT STRATEGY 6 Incorporate Realistic Job Previews Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs To give candidates an understanding of the jobs for which they are applying, public transportation organizations should provide the opportunity for applicants to preview actual day-to-day activities of the agency. An RJP is a recruiting approach that communicates important aspects of the job to an applicant (Office of Personnel Management, 2012)
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RECRUITMENT STRATEGY 8 Use Social Networking Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs In today's world of advanced technology, social media plays a huge role in keeping people informed and connected. As such, public transportation organizations should take advantage of social media in their recruitment processes to the greatest extent possible.
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RECRUITMENT STRATEGY 10 Use Structured Interview Protocols Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs In determining whether candidates are a good match for a specific position and the organization, public transportation organizations should conduct consistent and thorough interviews. Organizations should develop standardized interview questions that are behaviorally based, relevant to the job, and used consistently across all interviews for the position.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-13 1.2 Retention Overview This section provides an overview of effective retention strategies that are relevant to public transportation organizations. The introductory text provides an overview of the features of retention programs, some of the challenges that drive the need for effective strategies, the impact of strategic retention initiatives, and the relationship of retention to public transportation industry image-management efforts.
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1-14 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach Rapidly changing workforce and job requirements. Both the public transportation workforce and the nature of work at transit organizations are changing rapidly.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-15 1.2.4 Relationship to Image Management Policies that demonstrate a commitment to retaining existing employees project the image of an organization that values its employees. Likewise, an organization that effectively communicates its efforts to improve job satisfaction and make all employees feel they are a valuable part of the team is likely to have lower turnover.
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RETENTION STRATEGY 2 Create Advancement Within Positions Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Employees are more likely to stay with an organization if they believe there is potential for advancement in a reasonable amount of time. On average, employees anticipate some type of advancement opportunity every 3 to 4 years.
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RETENTION STRATEGY 4 Offer Alternative Benefit Packages Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Supplementing traditional benefits (e.g., health insurance, disability) with additional work-life benefits such as telecommuting, schedule flexibility (with only core work hours designated)
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RETENTION STRATEGY 6 Implement a Rewards Program for High Performers Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs It is important to recognize the accomplishments of high-performing managers and employees with rewards and public acknowledgment. A consistent and creative system for rewarding high-performing staff can lead to healthy competition, a strong incentive for highquality work, and, ultimately, a strategy for keeping talent within the organization.
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RETENTION STRATEGY 8 Recruit/Promote Current Employees Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Whenever possible, public transportation organizations should attempt to select qualified applicants for open positions from within the organization. Organizations benefit in a number of ways by hiring from within, including providing existing employees the opportunity to advance within the organization.
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1-20 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach 1.3 Training and Development Overview This section provides an overview of effective training and development strategies that are relevant to public transportation organizations. The introductory text provides an overview of the features of training and development programs, some of the challenges that drive the need for effective strategies, the impact of strategic training and development initiatives, and the relationship of training and development to managing perceptions about the transit industry's image.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-21 development are used to address the knowledge or skill gaps of individual employees. NCRHP Report 693 notes that training focused on transportation-related issues can help address how to respond appropriately to demographic changes in the workforce, technological advances, and greater demands, all of which are challenges currently faced by the transit industry (Cronin et al., 2012)
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1-22 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach the developed training program. Evaluation should include both formative and summative evaluations.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-23 latest technologies. As a result, they may not be adequately equipped to teach the necessary skills due to the complexity of concepts being taught and a lack of training expertise.
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1-24 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach training will be as effective as possible by tailoring it to the specific needs of the organization and the job(s) for which it is being developed.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-25 indicated they had been unjustly treated by not receiving a promotion or salary increase (Ward and Hill, 1996)
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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 2 Explore Available Funding for Training Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Small community and rural transit agencies often require assistance to meet their training needs. There are various opportunities through state DOTs, state transit associations, the FTA, NTI, and other entities to obtain training resources or delivery at little or no cost to a transit agency.
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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 4 Address Training Needs in Conjunction with Performance Appraisals Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Performance appraisals evaluate the job performance of employees. Typically, performance appraisals give employees performance feedback, identify skills gaps, and link to administrative decisions such as salary, promotions, and the allocation of rewards.
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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 6 Adopt Means of Supporting Higher Education and Training for Employees Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Employees value an organization that invests in them and their education and training. By supporting higher education programs, public transportation organizations can assist employees in furthering their education or attending training that will help them to better perform their jobs.
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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 8 Develop Partnerships with Other Organizations Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Public transportation organization partnerships can be developed with a wide variety of valuable community organizations, including other transit agencies, local community colleges or universities, and unions. Each of these training partnership opportunities offers unique benefits to public transportation organizations.
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TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY 10 Ensure that Transfer of Training Occurs Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs To ensure that training and development programs have the intended positive effect, public transportation organizations should plan in advance of training implementation to ensure that transfer of training occurs following the training and development program. Transfer of training means that the knowledge and skills learned during training are applied in the actual work setting once training is completed (Salas and Cannon-Bowers, 2001)
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-31 1.4 Professional Capacity-Building Overview This section provides an overview of effective professional capacity-building strategies that are relevant to public transportation organizations. The introductory text provides an overview of the features of professional capacity-building programs, some of the challenges that drive the need for effective strategies, the impact of strategic professional capacity-building initiatives, and the relationship of professional capacity building to managing the public transportation industry's image.
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1-32 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach promotion opportunities elsewhere (31% of respondents)
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-33 and their opportunities for advancement (Cronin et al., 2011)
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1-34 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY-BUILDING STRATEGY 2 Establish Regular Management Retreats, Workshops, and Leadership Events Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs The innovative ideas required to address management and operational challenges facing the public transportation industry can come from leaders at any level of the organization. It is important that transit leaders can break down silos, or barriers that form because of structural or functional divisions in the organization, in a forum that supports the exchange of ideas and lessons learned.
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Module 1: Tailor effective Strategies into Workforce Practices 1-35 PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY-BUILDING STRATEGY 3 Use Competency-Based Leader Selection and Training Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs When selecting transit managers, the public transportation industry typically prioritizes time spent in a related position. This experience often serves as the primary source of training for transit managers (U.S.
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PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY-BUILDING STRATEGY 5 Institute a Job Rotation Program Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Modern public transportation organizations must be able to rapidly adapt to changing operational demands and develop personnel with the diverse skill sets required to address complex problems. The diversity of transit positions, particularly as they are contained within operations, maintenance, or administration, can create institutional disconnects, poor communication, and ineffective teamwork within the agency.
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PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY-BUILDING STRATEGY 7 Develop Formal Career Paths Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs Professional capacity building is about preparing employees for the range of challenges they are likely to face throughout their careers with the organization. Public transportation organizations and their employees benefit when employees can understand and anticipate future career demands and seek out appropriate training and development opportunities.
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1-38 Building a Sustainable Workforce in the Public Transportation Industry -- A Systems Approach PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY-BUILDING STRATEGY 9 Implement Workforce/Succession Planning Description Key Implementation Steps Sample Programs The transportation industry has generally been slow to embrace formal workforce or succession planning programs (Cronin et al., 2011)
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