zynga 5-13 5pm

Evaluation Sheet

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Evaluation sheet for the Zynga retention toolkit Version 1

Team Name _____________________________________________________ Team Leader ____________________________________________________ I) Did they convince you that they selected a reasonable set of program goals and metrics for the overall retention effort?

(Max points 5) Points awarded _____ ________________________________________________________________________ II) Did they convince you that they selected and justified the appropriate overall retention strategy for your organization’s culture, challenges and issues?

(Max points 10) Points awarded _____ _____________________________________________________________________ III) Did they convince you that they have provided an effective retention toolkit that individual managers can and would use for retaining employees? Did they convincingly describe each available retention approach or tool, explain why the tool works and then provide in their support document an effective description of the steps that a manager could follow to implement each individual retention tool? · Was the tool’s description clear? · Did you understand when the tool should be used? · Was each implementation step clear and understandable? · Did they clearly explain and sell you on why each step is necessary? · Were you convinced that this retention tool would work at Zynga?

(Max points 85) Points awarded _____ ______________________________________________________________________ NOW, ADD UP THE POINTS FROM ALL THREE SECTIONS (From 0 - 100)

Total over-all points awarded ______ ______________________________________________________________________ V) Overall assessment – Will you sign the check? Decide whether to "sign the check" based on how successfully they sold and convinced you (the evaluator) to theoretically fund their proposed retention process. (Where a Yes answer means a guaranteed “A” grade for this assignment) I would (theoretically) sign the check for funding this project (Yes ___ / No ___ ) End of the evaluation sheet 4/11/1

SFSU Associates Retention Toolkit for Key Employees

MGMT 610 - Human Resource Management

Executive Summary • Increase Zynga revenue by $60.75 Million per year • Retention of Key Employees by utilizing cheap and quick tools • Program ROI: The Costs were $30,000; the Benefits were $60.75

Million • Retaining Key Employees at a total cost of only $30,000 • The Key Employees Retention Toolkit has been used with a 93.7% success

rate in over 12 corporations in the past two years, the most recent being at Facebook

Goals of Retention Toolkit

1. Increase revenue by at least 7.5% of Zynga’s annual revenue or $60.75 million.

2. The program's second goal is to increase revenue by 7.5% within the first six months of implementation.

• Goal Measurement - The CFO will compare revenue from the past year to the revenue from first six months after implementation. It must be increased by a minimum of 7.5% for success and less than 5% will call for removal of program.

Goals for the Retention Tools

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• Table of Contents • Table of Contents ......................................................................................... 3

• Goals of the Retention Tools ........................................................................ 4

• Process Map ................................................................................................. 6

• Repeatable Processes ................................................................................... 8 • A Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees .................................................................. 09

• A Repeatable Process for Calculating Turnover Cost of Key Employees ...................................... 19

• A Repeatable Process for Why Key Employees Left in the Past .................................................... 43

• A Repeatable Process to Identify the Potential

• Causes of Turnover for Key Employees ........................................................................................ 50

• A Repeatable Process for Identifying At-‐Risk

• Key Employee Retention Targets .................................................................................................. 61

• Tools ............................................................................................................ 74 • Speeding Up Career Progression .................................................................................................. 75

• Challenge Plan ............................................................................................................................. 85

• Learning Plan ................................................................................................................................ 95

• Dream Job Program .................................................................................................................... 110

• “Your Day”/ Development Day .................................................................................................... 115

• Job Rotation ................................................................................................................................ 124

• Get the Family and Friends Involved .......................................................................................... 132

• Sign The Check ........................................................................................ 138


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1. Speed Up Your Career Progression - The goal is to help your key employees find a career path in your organization by identifying their career goals and developmental needs. A career development or coaching program can help you with succession planning and can increase employee retention rates by 24.7% overall. Goals Measurement - The Department Manager will review career paths for key employees each quarter in the first week. The manager will review a progression checklist for career paths at the end of each workweek for success and growth of key employees, so Zynga will ensure they have an overall retention rate of 24.7 % within six months.

2. Getting Your Families Involved - The goal is to retain your key employee through giving gifts, cards, and letters to their friends and families, to maximize employee productivity. Having friends and family involved has a success rate of decreasing key employee turnover by 19.8% and it motivates individuals to increase employee satisfaction.

Goals Measurement - The Department Manager will keep a checklist every quarter of family and friends of the key employee for gift giving on holidays and birthdays. The larger gifts are given by the Chief People Officer and approved by the Chief Financial Officer, to reduce employee turnover by 19.8 %.

3. Planning Your Day/ Development Day - The goal is to motivate your key employees through strategic learning, planning, and thinking for career development internally and externally. Fifty key employees will be accepted in this program to reduce turnover rates by 24.7%, and develop their skills and talent.

Goals Measurement - Human Resources, Department Managers, Supervisors, and Employee ideas are welcomed to implement employee development and career planning. The Human Resource Manager facilitates the development day with a maximum capacity of fifty people in this program.


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4. Increase Retention of Key Employees by 27.4% - The goal is to increase the retention of key employees by 27.4% within the six months of implementation.

Goal Measurement - The HR Director will monitor retention of key employees for every department utilizing the toolkit. The director will compare the rate of retention to the goal the first week of every quarter.

5. Increase Revenue by at least 7.5% of Zynga’s Annual Revenue or $60.75 Million –The goal is to increase revenue by 7.5% within the first six months of implementation.

Goal Measurement - The CFO will compare revenue from the past year to the revenue from the first six months after implementation. It must be increased by a minimum of 7.5% for success. Less than 5% will call for removal of the program.

6. Job Rotation -The goals are to increase the motivation, accelerate the development of key employees, enable them to work in different areas, and increase their interest with Zynga. The goal is to implement in two days for 90% accuracy.

Goal Measurement - The Direct Manager is responsible for making sure that key employees are committed, by using a checklist and having accuracy of 90%.

Process Map

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Process Map

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Repeatable Processes

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Repeatable Processes

A Repeatable Process for Prioritizing

Key Employees

A Repeatable Process for Calculating Turnover Cost of Key Employees

A Repeatable Process for Why Key Employees Left in the Past

A Repeatable Process to Identify the Potential

Causes of Turnover for Key Employees

A Repeatable Process for Identifying At-‐Risk

Key Employee Retention Targets

A Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees

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Now that we have seen the overall process in the process map, we will move on to our first repeatable process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets. Understanding the importance of targeting key employees will save managers’ time and Zynga’s resources. This repeatable process allows managers to determine exactly where they should focus their time and resources on Prioritizing Key Employees.

A Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

Why Prioritizing Key Employees as

Retention Targets is a Necessary Process Assuming that all employees have the same retention impact is a mistake. Prioritizing key employees allows Zynga to distinguish between standard

employees that can be easily replaced with little to no negative impact on Zynga’s revenue and key employees who are hard to replace and have a high impact on

revenue. Prioritizing key employees as retention targets will save Zynga’s limited resources, (we simply cannot focus retention efforts on every employee

effectively), managers’ time, budget resources, and will ultimately help increase revenue. Prioritizing key employees is a step in increasing annual revenue at Zynga by 7.5% or $60.75 Million ($810.06 Million * .075 = $60.75 Million).

What is Employee Prioritization?

Prioritization is the process of identifying which areas should get the fastest or the most attention. Prioritizing jobs and individuals has the effect of telling the retention team where to focus their time and energy. Not every retention problem that Zynga faces has equal importance or consequences. Decision makers and people that control budgets can't afford to allocate resources equally to every problem. In the same light, managers can't afford to spend an equal amount of time on every potential retention problem they encounter. The only solution to this dilemma of limited resources and time is to develop some logical process of allocating resources so that the largest amount of resources goes to the "right" or most effective retention problems. It only makes sense to put the most time and dollars into retaining the employees that have the highest "priority"


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or weight. This is done solely for management use, the employees will not be told of the ranking.

Who, Where, and When of A Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

The Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets should be conducted by the HR Coordinator and double checked by the HR Director. Zynga will be able to find information regarding the repeatable process in the Payroll department, with the CFO, and in the Human Resources Department. The Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets should be completed yearly; on the very 1st full week of the fiscal year in January.

for the Repeatable Process of Key Terms Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

● High Impact: An element that contributes to identifying the prioritization of

key employees (see definition, key employee below). ● Key Employee: An employee, who has been working for Zynga for over 3

months, earns a salary of over $100,000 annually, and whose departure would impact revenue by 1% or more of Zynga’s annual revenue.

● Prioritization: Process, when executed, ranks employees and jobs based on

their relative importance or priority to the organization. For example, employees can earn a ranking from 1-3 (1 being top priority and 3 being lowest priority).

● Prioritization Percentage Target: The number of jobs that should be

targeted for retention efforts. Between 20% - 30% (569 - 854) of total employees (2846).

● Repeatable Process: Process, when executed, in which different people, at

different times, in different areas get the same result (within 2%). ● Standard Employee: Employee who does not meet the criteria of a key

employee (listed above).


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Goals for the Repeatable Process of Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

1. Differentiate key employees from standard employees for management use.

Weight: 55% 2. Prioritize 20% to 30% (569 - 854) of total (2846) employees. Weight: 35% 3. Time requirements: Process will not exceed 6-8 hours per week in overall

work, per employee, during target week. Weight: 10%

Recognize the Benefits for the Repeatable Process of Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

● Prioritization will narrow the focus of managers and upper management

toward the top 20% to 30% of total employees. ● A process step toward increasing Zynga’s revenue by $60.75 Million.

● Increased productivity across individuals, teams, and units by 23.6%.

● Dramatic results from a small amount of work; 10% to 20% increase on

business impacts. ● By using this process, Zynga will optimize its chance at success which in

turn helps drive job security, enhanced rewards (bonuses), career advancement opportunities, and reputation for the organization overall.

Now we will provide a detailed progression of each step and the methods used to determine the factors that Zynga will base the prioritization of key employees on. Upon using this process, Zynga will quickly (within 48 hours) be able to account for the key employees that are most valuable to the organization and its long-term success.


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Step One: Consult Key Source List (provided) to Obtain Information Regarding Key Employees

By consulting the key source list, Zynga can locate managers/departments that will provide information regarding key employees. This is the first step in collecting data which will lead to choosing the factors Zynga will use to prioritize key employees. The key source list will identify which factors are most relevant for prioritizing your key employees. Once you have this data you can begin to select the key employees and focus your retention efforts on these individuals. These departments and individuals will assist in the process of prioritizing key employees. This should be done during the first week of the fiscal year (January) in order to get the greatest success rate of 93.7%.

We have listed several key sources (highlighted are recommended sources) you can use below:

1. Ask the Senior Managers which Positions are Critical for Success

Quite often the senior manager of a business unit or department knows instantaneously which positions are crucial. When possible, work directly with the General Manager or Director of the high priority business units in order to identify the key jobs:

• Ask them to list the jobs that, if left vacant, will have a high negative business impact.

• In addition, ask them which jobs, if they were filled with key employees, would have the most impact on business success.

• Finally, ask them which positions where they might want you to "hire them all" because the firm is always facing a shortage in this key position.

• Independently ask several of the top managers to identify the top three key positions in their unit. If there is agreement, you can rest assured that you have already identified the key positions.


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We have listed several key sources (highlighted are recommended sources) you can use below:

2. Ask Training and HR Planning which Key Skills are Essential for Success In many organizations, the training and development function or the human resource planning function have pre-identified the key skills and competencies that are required for the continued success of the corporation.

• Contact the individuals responsible for workforce planning and training and development.

• Ask them to provide you with the list of the key skills and competencies that have been identified as being essential to the future success of the firm.

• Have the GM of each business unit verify that those skills are in fact essential and also that the firm is facing a shortage of those skills.

• Next, identify work with recruiting in order to identify the positions that require those skills and give those positions a higher hiring priority.

3. Look at the Budget to Identify High Priority Positions Generally, positions that are given increased headcount across the business units are high priority positions. High priority positions are also exempt from hiring or salary freezes.

4. Ask Recruiting about the Most Critical Hiring Jobs Typically the recruiting department has already identified the most critical or hard to hire jobs. Obviously if a job is hard to fill, then this is an important job to target retention efforts on. Ask them to share with you the most difficult to recruit jobs. 5. Ask Consultants for an Unbiased, Second Opinion on Critical Positions It is a good idea to get a second opinion by working with executive recruiters to identify the hard to retain positions.


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What to Do Next with the Data from Key Source List

Once you have consulted the key source list to obtain the necessary information regarding key employees, the next step is to apply the information to identify the factors for prioritizing key employees. The data you should collect from the key source list will be the prioritization factors that are most relevant to Zynga. Once you have collected this information you can then begin the process of prioritizing key employees. This is an important step because it identifies the most important factors (i.e., High Impact) that employee prioritization should be based on. Step Two: Identify Factors for Prioritizing Key Employees

Using Information Acquired from Key Source List We recommend no less than two factors and no more than four factors be utilized to accurately identify how key employees will be prioritized. Highlighted below are the “HIGH IMPACT PRIORITIZATION” factors that we recommend Zynga use to identify how key employees will be prioritized. Example below:

HIGH IMPACT PRIORITIZATION FACTORS

1. High Value Individuals- Individuals that are top performers, difficult to replace, and/or possess essential skills or contacts.

2. Critical or Pivotal Positions/Skills- In some cases, high retention rates in certain jobs or for certain essential skills are critical to an organization's success, regardless of which department or business unit the position or skill resides. For example, in organizations where great management is essential, the top job in every business function, department, and business unit might be targeted for high retention levels. In some cases, these jobs are targeted because they are just hard to replace but most cases they are targeted because of their high profit impact and because they serve as a "feeder job" for other higher management positions.


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3. Revenue Impact Jobs – Jobs that create revenue are almost always at the top of retention priority lists. But you also need to include jobs that handle money and jobs where bad interactions with high profit customers or suppliers can impact business results.

4. Critical Departments or Products -- Some departments, functions, or products, may be critical when it comes to retention, even though these departments don't reside in a priority business unit. For example in an organization where quality is essential, the six sigma function may be critical to business success in every business unit (i.e. including low priority business units). In those cases, retention efforts would focus on all six sigma related jobs throughout the corporation.

5. Individuals "At Risk" of Leaving – It’s important to develop a process for identifying which of your high value employees are most likely to leave. Targeting retention efforts on individuals that are not being recruited externally or that are likely to retire with the company makes little economic sense. 6. High Loss Potential Jobs – Jobs that include work that has the possibility of a high “negative” loss if an error is made, needs to be given a high priority (Even if insurance covers most of the losses). This loss could be damaging PR to physical destruction, loss of life, something that stops production, distribution or sales. 7. Geographic Area -- If most of your high-impact jobs are in a limited geographic area, it makes sense to focus your initial efforts on employees that work within that area. 8. Key Business Units --The most important business units are generally those that have the highest profit margins, that have the highest growth rate, or that bring in the most revenue. Generally retention efforts are focused on the jobs that reside in the most important business units in an organization. 9. Ask Senior Manager’s for Others - Because senior managers overlook the company’s employees and operations, they know firsthand and have insight upon which employees are key employee targets. Senior managers are able provide more in depth information about key employees which is never documented.


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Decision Point: If less than two factors or more than four factors are identified as critical to Zynga, consult senior managers on what factors to base prioritization on.

Once specific factors are identified as critical determinants for the process of prioritizing key employees, Zynga will use chosen factors to rank employees based on their relative importance and/or priority to Zynga. Employees will be categorized into high-priority, standard-priority or low-priority employees, which will accurately measure the loss Zynga will incur in the event of employee departure.

Step Three: Prioritize Key Employees Based on Factors Identified in Step Two

Now that you have information regarding which prioritization factors are most relevant to Zynga, and who fits into these factors, you will have a list containing the names of key employees. This process is an essential part of our toolkit. The list of names you have gathered from steps one through three will be the key employees you will base the rest of the toolkit process on.

Decision Point: Should you identify less than 20% as key employees consult the CEO and CFO as to the direction for retention efforts.

As the process demonstrates, when Zynga has limited time and resources, it must prioritize employees in order to focus its retention efforts. This can be done quickly and will enhance the utilization of the resources within Zynga. Although this process can be implemented with a 93.7% success rate, there is still a 6.3% capacity for error. These errors, although uncommon, can have a substantial impact on the success of the process and therefore, must be identified in the next sub-section.


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Potential Problems & Solutions with the Process of Prioritizing Key Employees

Through the pilot studies that we have conducted where the process of prioritizing key employees was implemented, we have identified a list of the problems that occurred less than 6.3% of the time, which altered the success rate from the stated 93.7% to 81.4%. ● Problem: Automatically prioritizing employees at top levels of the

organizational hierarchy. Solution: Check your biases towards top level positions at the door. Not all top-level positions will be prioritized and it is extremely important to communicate this to individuals involved as the key sources mentioned above.

● Problem: Having more than 50% of the selection criteria subjective.

Solution: Set clear selection criteria that are metrics driven. Do not accept anything without metrics (dollar impact, % impact) to back it up.

● Problem: Not revising the list periodically (with at least 20% change).

Solution: Keeping the HR Generalist involved in the process of prioritizing key employees will ensure that the list stays active and accurate. Have this person set up recurring quarterly reminders in their Outlook calendar to avoid letting the list fall through the cracks.

● Problem: HR does the prioritization on its own without consulting Senior

Managers due to schedule conflictions. Solution: Ask Senior Managers to keep an ongoing monthly list of key employees that will be readily available to HR as requested. We suggest Zynga outlines this task in managers’ job descriptions.

● Problem: Failing to include diversity in the equation.

Solution: Prioritization efforts must target key employees meeting requirements identified by all factors.

● Problem: Not calculating the business impacts in dollars and the ROI of the

process. Solution: Always measure the impacts in terms of dollars and ROI, not just as money saved and lowered costs.


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Realizing the potential problems before implementing the toolkit will greatly improve Zynga’s chances of a successful retention program. After the prioritization process has been completed, it is necessary to calculate the negative impact key employee turnover can have on not only Zynga’s revenue, but also on its productivity and resources.

Now We Will Calculate the Impact on Revenue that Losing a Key Employee Can Have at Zynga.

STOP - If you have any questions or concerns please let us know. We would like your approval before going forward. If we have your approval please

move on to page 19.

A Repeatable Process for Calculating the Turnover Costs of Key Employees

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Now that we have identified key employees and the importance of prioritizing them, we will move on to a repeatable process for how to calculate the turnover cost of key employees. Calculating the turnover costs of key employees shows the dollar impact that they have on a firm and puts into perspective the importance of prioritizing them. In essence, managers and HR personnel will see where to focus their retention efforts on. This is important as dollar impact can be upwards of $60.75 million at Zynga.


Why Calculating Turnover Costs of Key Employees is

Necessary We estimate that the costs and loss of productivity due to turnover of key

employees can damage Zynga’s revenue and operational costs by more than 7.5% or $60.75 Million ($810.06 Million * .075 = $60.75 Million). Calculating key

turnover costs will provide data, which Zynga can use to determine whether it has a retention issue.

What are Costs of Employee Turnover?

Employee turnover costs are costs that are in essence, lost revenue that would have been realized had the company retained the employee as well as the cost of finding, hiring, and training a new employee. This also includes the initial grace period where the new employee is not producing the equivalent of that of the former employee.


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Who, Where, and When of A Repeatable Process for Calculating the Turnover Costs of a Key Employee

The Repeatable Process for Calculating the Turnover Costs of a Key Employee should be conducted by the departmental managers in collaboration with Human Resources. Zynga will be able to find the information for calculating the turnover costs of a key employee in the Human Resources department, with Payroll, and with the CFO and CPO. This should be done at the start of a calendar year and fiscal year (January) when Zynga is analyzing a potential retention problem.

In order to begin any process you must set goals, define the terminology being used, and recognize the benefits.

Key Terms for the Repeatable Process of

Calculating Turnover Costs for Key Employees

• Accuracy of Cost Calculations: Within 2% of actual cost to the firm.

• Cost of Turnover: Costs that are tangible or intangible associated with replacing an employee.

• Key Employee: An employee who has been working for Zynga for over 3

months, earns a salary of over $100,000 and whose departure would impact 1% or more of Zynga’s annual revenue.

• Quality: General excellence of standard or level of six-sigma, 99.99966% -

100%.

• Repeatable Process: Process, when executed, in which different people, at different times, in different areas get the same result (within 2%).

• Voluntary Turnover: The percentage of the total number of workers who willingly leave Zynga and have to be replaced in a given time period to the average number of key employees. Formula: VKE/KE=KTR*100, where VKE is voluntary key employees displaced, KE is the number of key employees at Zynga, and KTR is the key turnover rate.


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In order to begin any process you must set goals, define the terminology being used, and recognize the benefits. The goals for measuring turnover costs and impacts should be based on the effect a key departure has on revenue, having accurate results, and being done quickly.

Goals for the Repeatable Process of Calculating

Turnover Costs for Key Employees

1. Identify the dollar impact related to losing a key employee(s) and its financial effects on Zynga’s revenue. Weight: 85%

2. Accuracy rate of calculations to ensure quality. Weight: 10% 3. Time requirements: Calculations will not exceed 8 hours. Weight: 5%

Recognize the Benefits to the Repeatable Process of

Calculating Turnover Costs for Key Employees ● Allows executives to determine the real cost of turnover including

intangibles such as knowledge and skills. ● Based on dollar impact, this process allows executives to make initial

decisions to begin cutting turnover by increasing retention efforts. ● Helps identify the turnover cost per key employee to determine whether or

not Zynga has a retention problem and whether or not it is cost effective to recognize it and focus resources on fixing it.

Step One: Calculate the Dollar Impact of Losing One Key

Employee Last Year Prior to examining the impact that key employee departures incur, you must first list all the factors that are affected by it. This is done by the Human Resource Director and double-checked by Payroll. By working with the CFO’s office, data can be obtained to assist in calculating these costs. This is performed every Monday of the second full week of January. When examining the impacts that key employee departures incur, you must first list all the factors that are affected by it. While there is the initial savings of not paying salaries and benefits, great managers know that losing a key employee


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results in a drastic drop in productivity. This leads to a loss of output and ultimately a loss in revenue. This is money that does not need to be lost, and should be avoided at all cost. By using this process you can help ensure that Zynga avoids these losses. We have provided a list of costs associated with losing a key employee. Each Departmental Manager should also add any unique costs that may be specific to an individual department (such as special software training). The costs themselves should be calculated by the HR Coordinator and double-checked by the Payroll Department. You can get data to assist you with calculating these costs by working with the CFO’s office. We have highlighted the “DO NOT OMIT” areas, which are the costs that should be calculated first in the face of time restraints. Example below:

Factors contained within purple boxes are considered

“DO NOT OMIT” Factors

Factors That Create Turnover Costs

Part A - Key Replacement Administrative and Lost Investment Related Costs

A1. Productivity Losses – Calculate the cost of lost productivity at a minimum of 40% to 60% of the leaving person's compensation and benefits costs for each week the position is vacant, even if there are other employees performing the work. Calculate the lost productivity at 100% if the position is completely vacant for any period of time.

A2. Lost Knowledge, Skills, and Contacts - Calculate the cost of lost knowledge, skills, and contacts that the departing employee is taking with them out of your door. Use a formula of 50% of the person's annual salary for one year of service, increasing each year of service by 10%.


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A3. Replacement Employees – Calculate the cost of the person(s) who fills in while the position is vacant. This can be either the cost of a temporary employee, or the cost of existing employees performing the vacant job in addition to their own. A4. Administrative Extra Costs - Calculate the cost of conducting a post-exit interview to include the time of the person conducting the interview, the time of the person leaving, the administrative costs of stopping payroll, benefit deductions, benefit enrolments and the cost of the various forms needed to process a resigning employee. A5. Loss of Manager Time - Calculate the cost of the manager who has to understand what work remains, and how to cover that work until a replacement is found. Calculate the cost of the manager who conducts his or her own version of the employee exit interview. A6. Loss of Training Investment- Calculate the cost of training your company has invested in this employee who is leaving. Include internal training, external programs and external academic education. Include licenses or certifications the company has helped the employee obtain to do their job effectively. A7. Position Vacancy- Calculate the impact on departmental productivity because the person is leaving. Who will pick up the work, whose work will suffer, what departmental deadlines will not be met or delivered late. Calculate the cost of department staff discussing their reactions to the vacancy. A8. Severance Package - Calculate the cost of severance and benefits continuation provided to employees who are leaving that are eligible for coverage under these programs.


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Part B - Recruitment Costs for Finding A Replacement Employee

B1. Hiring Department/Manager Expenses- The cost of the hiring department’s (immediate supervisor, next level manager, peers and other people on the selection list) time to review and explain position requirements, review candidates background, conduct interviews, discuss their assessments and select a finalist. Also include their time to do their own sourcing of candidates from networks, contacts and other referrals. This can take upwards of 100 hours.

B2. Assessment/ Pre-Employment Tests Cost - Calculate the cost of the various candidate pre-employment tests to help assess a candidate’s skills, abilities, aptitude, attitude, values and behaviors.

B3. Recruiting Advertising Costs - The cost of advertisements (from a $200 classified to a $5,000 display advertisement); agency costs at 12 - 20% of annual compensation; employee referral costs of $500 - $2,000 or more; Internet postings of $300 - $500 per listing. B4. Recruiter Costs - The cost of the internal recruiter's time to understand the position requirements, develop and implement a sourcing strategy, review candidate’s backgrounds, prepare for interviews, conduct interviews, prepare candidate assessments, conduct reference checks, make the employment offer and notify unsuccessful candidates. This can range from a minimum of 30 hours to over 100 hours per vacant position. B5. Recruiter Assistant Costs - Calculate the cost of a recruiter's assistant who will spend 20 or more hours in basic level review of resumes, developing candidate interview schedules and making any travel arrangements for out of town candidates.


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B6. Resume Viewing Costs - Calculate the administrative cost of handling, processing and responding to the average number of resumes considered for each opening at $3.50 per resume. B7. New Hire Interviews - Calculate the number of hours spent by the internal recruiter interviewing internal candidates along with the cost of those internal candidates to be away from their jobs while interviewing. B8. Reference/Background Check Cost - Calculate the cost of reference, educational and criminal background checks, especially if these tasks are outsourced. Don't forget to calculate the number of times these are done per open position as some companies conduct this process again for the final two or three candidates.



Part C - Costs of Training a Replacement Employee C1. Orientation Costs - Calculate the cost of orientation in terms of the new person's salary and the cost of the person who conducts the orientation. Also include the cost of orientation materials.

C2. Training of the New Hire- Calculate the cost of departmental training as the actual development and delivery cost plus the cost of the salary of the new employee. Note that the cost will be significantly higher for some positions such as sales representatives and call center agents who require 4 - 6 weeks or more of training.

C3. Trainer Fee - Calculate the cost of the person(s) who conducts the training. C4. Training Materials - Calculate the cost of various training materials needed including company or product manuals, computer or other technology equipment used in the delivery of training.


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Part D - Lost Productivity Costs D1. Deadlines/Product Delays - Calculate the impact cost on the completion or delivery of a critical project where the departing employee is a key participant.

D2. Manager Time Lost - Calculate the cost of reduced productivity of a manager or director who loses a key staff member, such as an assistant, who handled a great deal of routine, administrative tasks, that the manager will now have to handle.

D3. Low Productivity Time - Upon completion of whatever training is provided, the employee is contributing at a 25% productivity level for the first 2-4 weeks. The cost therefore is 75% of the new employee's full salary during that time period. D4. Moderate Productivity Time - During weeks 5 - 12, the employee is contributing at a 50% productivity level. The cost is therefore 50% of full salary during that time period. D5. Nearly Full Productivity Time - During weeks 13 - 20, the employee is contributing at a 75% productivity level. The cost is therefore 25% of full salary during that time period. D6. New Hire Mistakes - Calculate the cost of mistakes the new employee makes during this elongated indoctrination period.


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Part E - New Hire Costs E1. Coaching - Calculate the cost of a manager's time spent developing trust and building confidence in the new employee's work.

E2. New Hire Administration Costs- Calculate the cost of bringing the new person on board including the cost to put the person on the payroll, establish computer and security passwords and identification cards, business cards, internal and external publicity announcements, telephone hook-ups, cost of establishing email accounts, costs of establishing credit card accounts, or leasing other equipment such as cell phones, automobiles, laptops, etc.



Part F - Lost Revenue Costs F1. Lost Revenue Per Employee - For staff, calculate the revenue per employee by dividing total company revenue by the average number of employees in a given year. Whether an employee contributes directly or indirectly to the generation of revenue, their purpose is to provide some defined set of responsibilities that are necessary to the generation of revenue. Calculate the lost revenue by multiplying the number of weeks the position is vacant by the average weekly revenue per employee


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Calculate the Total Loss of Revenue from One Key Employee

According to the factors listed in part one calculate the dollar amount of losing a key employee using the formula:

Lost Opportunity Cost+ Recruitment Costs+ Training Costs+ Lost Productivity Costs+ New Hire Costs+ Lost Sales Costs = Total loss of one key

employee, or

A + B + C +D + E +F = Total loss of one key employee We have included a Sample Cost Sheet for your use.

Sample Total Cost Sheet: Costs of Turnover Part A - Key Replacement Administrative and Lost Investment Related

Costs

A1-Productivity Losses

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1,080 Weekly salary of fill-in person

2 50% Lost productivity of fill in person, use 40%-60% loss rate A1

TOTAL $540 Lost productivity cost (Line 1 x Line 2)

A2-Lost Knowledge, Skills, and Contacts

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $100,000 Annual Salary

2 50% Lost knowledge, skills and contacts, % of salary 3 $50,000 Lost knowledge, skills and contacts (Line 1 x Line 2) 4 3 Years of service

5 10% Annual premium, 0 to 1.0 6 1.21 Loss Factor [(1 + Line 5)^(Line 4 - 1)]

A2TOTAL $60,500 Cost of lost knowledge (Line 3 x Line 6)


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A3-Replacement Employees

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1,080 Weekly salary of fill-in person

2 6 Number of weeks the person fills-in A3

TOTAL $6,480 Cost of replacement employee

A4-Administrative Extra Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR A4

TOTAL $500 Cost of a formal exit interview and processing time

A5-Loss of Manager Time

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $600 Cost of mgr's time to understand what work remains 2 $100 Cost of mgr's time who conducts own exit interview

A5 TOTAL $700 Total Cost (Line 1 + Line 2)

A6-Loss of Training Investment

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1,200 Cost of training EE by company personnel 2 $1,400 Cost of training EE by ext. prog./academic inst. 3 $1,400 Licenses/certifications paid for by company

A6 TOTAL $4,000 Total Cost (Line 1 + Line 2 + Line 3)

A7-Position Vacancy Caused

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $2,000 Productivity lost because the person is leaving 2 $500 Cost of staff discussing vacancy

A7 TOTAL $2,500 Total Cost (Line 1 + Line 2)


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A8-Severance Package

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $10,000 Severance package, $10,000/wk x 10 wks on average 2 $3,500 Benefits provided to employee, 35% of Line 1

A8 TOTAL $13,500 Total Cost (Line 1 + Line2)

Part B - Recruitment Costs For Finding A Replacement Employee

B1-Hiring Department/Manager Expenses

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $27 Hourly cost

2 20 Hours, can take upwards of 100 hours of total time B1

TOTAL $540 Recruiter's assistant, cost of (Line 1 x Line 2)

B2-Assesment/Pre Employment Test Cost

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $10 Skills test

2 $10 Abilities test 3 $10 Aptitude test 4 $10 Attitude test 5 $10 Values test 6 $10 Behavior tests 7 $60 Total of tests per applicant (Sum Line 1 to Line 6)

8 10 Number of applicants tested per position filled 9 $600 Total of all tests (line 7 x Line 8)

10 $100 Job Fit Assessment (use $100 for estimating purposes) 11 3 Number assessed per position filled 12 $300 Job Fit Assessments (Line 10 x Line 11)

B2 TOTAL $900 Total cost per position filled (Line 9 + Line 12)


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B3-Recruiting Advertising Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1,200 Advertising, classifieds, and display ads 2 $100,000 Position's annual salary, fully burdened 3 10% Agency fee @ 10%-30% of annual compensation 4 $10,000 Agency fee (Line 2 x Line 3)

5 $0 Employee referral, e.g., <$500 to >$2,000 6 $300 Internet posting, e.g., $300-$500 per listing 7 2 Number of Internet postings

8 $600 Internet postings (Line 6 x Line 7) 9 $0 Sign-on bonus

10 $0 Relocation package B3

TOTAL $11,800 Total costs (Line 1 + Line 4 + Line 5 + Line 8 to Line 10)

B4-Recruiter

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $27 Hourly costs

2 75 Hours, min. of 30 hours to 100+ hours per position B4

TOTAL $2,025 Internal recruiter's cost (Line 1 x Line 2)

B5-Recruiter's Assistant

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $18.90 Hourly cost for a Recruiter's assistant 2 20 Hours, min. of 30 hours to 100+ hours per position

B5 TOTAL $378 Recruiter's assistant, cost of (Line 1 x Line 2)

B6-Resume Viewing Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $3.50 $ cost/resume (handling/processing/responding) 2 100 Average number of resumes processed

B6 TOTAL $350 Viewing costs (Line 1 x Line 2)


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B7-New Hire Interviews

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $27 Hourly cost for internal recruiter

2 10 Hours spent interviewing internal candidates 3 $270 Cost of internal recruiter (Line 1 x Line 2) 4 $50 Hourly rate of position interviewing

5 35% Additional costs for benefits 6 $68 Hourly cost of internal applicant (Line 4 x (1.00 + Line 5))

7 10 Hours by internal candidates in interviewing 8 $675 Cost of internal candidates interviewing (Line 6 X Line 7)

B7 TOTAL $945 Total costs of internal interviews (Line 3 + Line 8)

B8-Reference/Background Check Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $45 Drug screen

2 $25 Educational verification 3 $20 Criminal background checks 4 $10 Other reference checks 5 $100 Total per candidate screened (Sum Line 1 to Line 4)

6 3 Number per position filled B8

TOTAL $300 Total cost per position filled (Line 5 x Line 6)


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Part C - Costs Of Training A Replacement Employee

C1-Orientation Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $50 New employee's hourly salary

2 10 Hours spent in new employee orientation 3 $60 New employee's salary for orientation (Line 1 x Line 2) 4 $35 Employee's salary who does the orientation 5 10 Hours spent in new employee orientation 6 $350 Employee salary conducting orientation (Line 4 x Line 5) 7 $100 Orientation materials

C1 TOTAL $510 Orientation, cost of (Line 3 + Line 6 + Line 7)

C2-Training of New Hire

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1,000 Department training development and delivery 2 $50 Hourly rate of new employee

3 50 Hours in training by new employee 4 $2,500 Salary of new employee while in training (Line 2 x Line 3)

C2 TOTAL $3,500 Total department training costs (Line 1 + Line 4)

C3-Trainer Fee

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $35 Hourly rate of training personnel

2 40 Hours of training C3

TOTAL $75 Cost of trainer's time (Line 1 x Line 2)


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C4-Training Materials

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $200 Training materials

2 $200 Computer costs 3 $200 Other equipment costs

C4 TOTAL $600 Materials costs (Line 1 + Line 2 + Line 3)

Part D - Lost Productivity Costs

D1-Deadlines/Product Delays

$

IMPACT FACTOR D1

TOTAL $4,500 Non-completion or delivery of a critical project

D2-Manager Time Lost

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $65 Hourly rate of manager who loses a key staff 2 25 Hours lost due to losing key staff member 3 $1,625 Cost of lost productivity (Line 1 x Line 2) 4 $75 Director's $/hr who loses a key staff member 5 10 Hours lost due to losing key staff member 6 $750 Cost of lost productivity (Line 4 x Line 5)

D2 TOTAL $2,375 Total cost of lost productivity (Line 3 + Line 6)

D3-Low Productivity Time

$


2 $2,000 New employee's weekly salary 3 75% Lost productivity factor (a given) 4 $1,500 Lost productivity, weekly (Line 2 x Line 3)

5 3 Weeks at a 75% loss rate, use 2, 3, or 4 D3

TOTAL $4,500 Lost productivity at 75% loss rate (Line 4 x Line 5)


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D4-Moderate Productivity Time

$


2 $2,000 New employee's weekly salary 3 50% Lost productivity factor (a given) 4 $1,000 Lost productivity, weekly (Line 2 x Line 3)

5 5 Weeks at 50% loss rate, use 1 to 8 D4


D5-Nearly Full Productivity Time

$


2 $2,000 New employee's weekly salary 3 25% Lost productivity factor (a given) 4 $500 Lost productivity, weekly (Line 2 x Line 3)

5 5 Weeks at 25% loss rate, use 1 to 8 D5


D6-New Hire Mistakes

$

IMPACT FACTOR D6

TOTAL $1,000 By new employee during indoctrination period

Part E - New Hire Costs

E1-Coaching

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $65 Hourly rate for Manager

2 50 Hours Manager needs to develop trust, etc E1

TOTAL $3,250 Cost of manager's time (Line 1 x Line 2)


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E2-New Hire Administration Costs

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $50 To put the person on the payroll

2 $50 To secure computer & security passwords 3 $50 Identification and business cards

4 $200 Internal and external publicity announcements 5 $50 Telephone hookups, establishing email accts 6 $60 Establishing credit card accounts

7 $70 Leasing equipment, e.g., cell phones, automobiles, etc. E2

TOTAL $530 Total costs (sum Line 1 through Line 7)

Part F - Lost Revenue Costs

F1-Lost Revenue Per Employee

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $1.14 B Yearly Revenue

2 3,000 Number of Employees 3 $380,000 Annual Revenue per employee (Line 1 / Line 2)

4 $7,308 Weekly revenue per employee (Line 3 / 52) 5 6 Number of weeks position is left vacant

F2 TOTAL $43,846 Total costs of vacancy (Line 4 x Line 5)


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CALCULATIONS OF TOTAL LOSS OF REVENUE FROM ONE KEY EMPLOYEE

Calculations

$

IMPACT FACTOR 1 $88,720 A-Lost Opportunity Cost

2 $17,238 B-Recruitment Costs 3 $4,685 C-Training Costs 4 $19,875 D-Lost Productivity Costs

5 $3,780 E-New hire Costs 6 $43,846 F-Lost Revenue Sales

TOTAL $178,144 Total Loss of Revenue (Line 1 + Line 2 + Line 3 + Line 4 + Line 5 + Line 6)

Potential Problems & Solutions to the Cost Sheet

• Problem: Over/under estimating costs. Solution: To avoid this problem, managers should create a range of costs by filling out the Costs Sheet conservatively, with low dollar amounts, and then filling one out liberally, with higher dollar amounts. Having two cost sheets will create a range that will better help management assess the costs of key employee turnover.

• Problem: Believing calculating turnover costs is an unnecessary step. Solution: Calculating the total turnover costs is essential for Zynga to identify all of the costs incurred through the loss of a key employee. Without using the Costs Sheet, managers won’t be able to see the actual dollars being lost and therefore might not take immediate and necessary action. This step is a key in determining and rectifying retention problems.


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• Problem: Not updating the cost form.

Solution: As Zynga grows and the social gaming industry grows, there will be other costs that affect the cost of key employee turnover. Adding these new and additional costs are necessary to keep the Cost Sheet a valuable and accurate tool. In addition to adding different costs, it might also be necessary to omit other costs such as health care benefits, if a national health care plan is introduced.

• Problem: Using the wrong data. Solution: Although managers might find it more time efficient to guesstimate some numbers or input a number they believe “sounds right,” it is essential for managers to take the necessary time and effort to complete the from correctly. Partnering with Human Resources, Payroll, and C-level managers will ensure that mangers fill the form out correctly. This collaboration will also give managers key information that will help them later in the toolkit.

Decision Point: If the dollar impact is less than 1% (threshold for a single key employee) of Zynga’s annual revenue ($810.06 Million * .01 = $8.1006 Million)

for the year, consult the CFO to see if it is financially beneficial to proceed. The list of factors may appear to be lengthy at first glance, but understanding the many costs associated with key employee departures will give a more accurate assessment of the dollar impact and productivity loss that the key employee’s departure has on Zynga’s revenue. Now that we have identified the factors that create the costs from turnover and the methods used to calculate these costs, we will analyze how to identify voluntary Key Employee departures in the last year.


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Step Two: Identify Number of Key Employees Who Left Voluntarily Last Year

Identifying the number of key employees who left voluntarily in the last year will give Zynga an accurate assessment of the dollar impacts associated with voluntary turnover. To do this, the HR coordinator must compile a list of key employees who voluntarily resigned from their position in the previous fiscal year. To ensure accuracy, this list must be double-checked by CPO. They should work with Payroll to acquire a correct number of key departures. This should be done the Tuesday of the 1st full week of January.

Decision Point: If the manager was not with the firm in the previous year, then they must consult with Human Resources to identify who these employees were.

Decision Point: If you are unable to identify any key departure after this step, stop and consult with CFO to see if it is financially beneficial to go back two calendar

years.

Identifying the number of key employees who left voluntarily within the past year is essential to accurately calculate the impact these departures have made on annual revenue. Not only does identifying this figure provide the dollar impact of the loss of a key employee presently, but it can also help forecast any potential losses that may be incurred in the future. After examining the proper way to identify the number of key employees, it is now possible to calculate the total revenue loss due to these key employee departures.


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Step Three: Calculate Total Loss of Revenue Due to the Loss of Key Employees Last Year

Calculating the total dollar impact of key employee turnover will provide data to help Zynga determine if they should be concerned about retention. Use the following formula to find total losses:

(Voluntary Key Departures) * Total Cost Created For Turnover of One Key Employee =

Total Loss of Revenue Due to Loss of Key Employees

The formula takes the number of key employees who left Zynga both voluntarily and involuntarily, calculated at the end of step two, and multiplies it by the sum of costs that are created when a key employee leaves. This gives you the total losses in revenue due to key departures. Human Resources should work with Payroll and have the calculations checked by the CFO. This should be done on Wednesday of the 1st full week of January.

Decision Point: Should the number generated not be above 7.5% (threshold for multiple key employees) of Zynga’s annual revenue ($810.06 Million * .075 =

$60.75 Million), one can consult the CPO and CEO to determine if continuing is necessary.

If you would like to see a sample cost sheet with calculations turn to Appendix

on page A1.

As the process demonstrates, Key Employees play a major role in the success of a firm as evidenced by the dollar impact generated with our formula. Not only are they productive, they carry with them invaluable knowledge, contacts, skills, and numerous other impacts on Zynga’s revenue. Zynga’s turnover percentage may be low, but if these people are Key Employees, leaving can have a drastic effect on revenue through hidden costs. Utilizing this process at least once a year by Human Resources can help identify any potential retention issues.


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Although formulas and potential costs are listed, there is still a 4.7% capacity for error. These errors are uncommon, but if calculated may affect the outcome of the process. They are identified in the next subsection.

Potential Problems and Solutions to the Repeatable Process

of Calculating Turnover Costs of Key Employees Through the pilot studies that we have conducted where the process of calculating turnover costs of key employees was implemented, we have identified a list of the problems that occurred less than 2.3% of the time, which altered the success rate from the stated 93.7% to 81.4%. ● Problem: Automatically prioritizing employees at top levels of the

organizational hierarchy. Solution: Not all top -level positions will be prioritized and it is extremely important to communicate this to individuals involved in key sources. Don’t worry about egos being offended as this repeatable process is solely done for the use of managers as we have mentioned previously.

● Problem: Having more than 50% of the selection criteria subjective Solution: Crosschecking criteria with other managers as well as Human Resources and the CPO will help to avoid this major pitfall. Because managers can sometimes get caught up in politics and personality wars in their respective departments, ensuring managers do not work on the criteria individually will dramatically decrease errors.

● Problem: Not revising the list periodically (with at least 20% change Solution: Because business changes at such a rapid pace, it is important to keep all criteria current and relevant to the business at the time. To do this, managers should review the criteria list on a yearly basis before they complete the list. During this time, changes to the criteria should be made as necessary.


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● Problem: HR does the prioritization on its own without consulting Senior Managers. Solution: Senior Managers are key in this process as they are the people most familiar with their departments and teams. Excluding Senior Managers from this process will result in inaccurate calculations and data. To ensure this does not happen, Human Resources and Senior Managers should collaborate together throughout the process.

● Problem: Not calculating the business impacts in dollars and the ROI of the

process. Solution: Assuming that there are no direct impacts on ROI is incorrect and can lead to costly decisions. Instead of thinking in terms of intangible things such as productivity, it is essential to the process to always calculate in dollars and analyze how it impacts ROI.

Realizing the potential problems before implementing this process will greatly improve Zynga’s chances of a successful retention program. After the calculating costs process has been completed, it is necessary to identify which key employees might be at risk of leaving so managers can act proactively instead of just reactively.

Now We Will Identify Which Key Employees Are At-Risk of Leaving in the

Next Six Months

STOP - If you have any questions or concerns please let us know. We would like your approval before going forward. If we have it please move on to page

43.

A Repeatable Process for Why Key Employees Left In the Past

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A Repeatable Process for Using Post-Exit Interviews to Identify Within 90% Accuracy Why Past Key Employees Have Left Zynga

Why Using Post-Exit Interviews to Identify the Reasons Past

Key Employees Have Left Zynga is a Necessary Process

Conducting post-exit interviews give managers an opportunity to discover the true reasons for past key employees’ departure. Initially, key employees may not want to disclose the truth for fear of “burning bridges”. However, allowing time to pass gives key employees an opportunity to cool down if necessary and reflect back to

their time at Zynga, in turn giving honest feedback. Using this process to identify the causes of past key employee turnover will reduce potential turnover by

5% to 15%.

What are Post-Exit Interviews?

Traditional exit interviews are normally conducted on the departing employee’s last day, which include a series of questions regarding their time at Zynga and the reason for their voluntary departure. While covering similar topics, post-exit interviews are conducted three to six months after a key employee’s departure, in order to give them an opportunity to reflect on their time at Zynga in a more meaningful manner. These interviews are conducted either over the phone, regular mail, or through email by issuing a questionnaire. Post-exit interviews are helpful because the data that is collected helps identify the real reasons why previous key employees have left Zynga.


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Who, Where, and When of a Repeatable Process for Using Post-Exit Interviews to Identify Why Past Key Employees

Left Zynga The repeatable process for using post-exit interviews in identifying why past key employees left should be conducted by the Human Resource Manager in conjunction with other department managers. The process should take no longer than 15 to 20 minutes per key employee and should be conducted three to six months after a key employee’s departure. This can be done in person or via emailed/mailed questionnaires. Key Terms for the Process of Using Post-Exit Interviews to

Identify Why Past Employees Left Zynga

• Traditional Exit Interview: An interview with a key employee on their last day of employment at Zynga. The interview is aimed at collecting data on why they are choosing to end their employment. These interviews are usually conducted on company premises behind closed doors to ensure privacy.

• Post-Exit Interview: In order to get the true answers to why key employees

quit, post-exit interviews are delayed for several months to give them time to diffuse any negative emotions. The interview is conducted three to six months after the key employee has left Zynga. Data from post-exit interviews is usually gathered by conducting surveys by telephone or email.

Identifying the reasons why employees have left is essential to know in order to stop them from impacting current key employees in the same way. Most companies use traditional exit interviews to attempt to identify these reasons, and they can be extremely inaccurate and contain serious flaws.


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Goals for Using Post-Exit Interviews to Identify Why Past Employees Left Zynga

1. Accurately identify within a 90% range the reasons why past key employees

have left. Weight: 70%

2. The process will take a manager between 4 to 8 hours per key employee to complete. Weight: 18%

3. Costs of the process should not exceed $10 per key employee interviewed. Weight: 12%

Recognize the Benefits for the Repeatable Process of Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets

• Former employees are less resistant six months later. • They have had time to reflect and compare Zynga to their new workplace. • They no longer have the need for a good reference from their manager which

could have restricted their answers in traditional exit interviews • Since neutral third parties generally do post-exit interviews, they feel more

comfortable that what they say will remain anonymous (if that is a goal).

Step One: Create a Post-Exit Interview Questionnaire Using the Key Questions List (below)

Creating a questionnaire of key questions to ask past key employees is essential in obtaining the real reason why key employees leave. The questionnaire can be used to identify what areas Zynga managers need improvement in, what areas are working well, and what preventative measures they can take to minimize potential key employee turnover in the future. The questionnaire should be reviewed and updated quarterly in order to optimize its effectiveness.

We recommend using all of the questions from the Key Questions list; however, managers can select questions that are better determinants of past turnover at their discretion.


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Key Questions List

1. What were the positive things about your job/manager/company that caused you to STAY as long as you did with us?

2. Are there any aspects in your CURRENT job/manager/company that are superior to what we offered?

3. What were the 3 biggest BARRIERS to productivity in the last 6 months with us?

4. Can you help us improve the way we manage/ do business by telling us what were the significant "triggers" or REASONS that made you to decide to leave our firm.

5. Can you let us know the TOP 5 significant reasons for leaving us: (1= most important reason, 2= next most important, etc. up to 5 reasons, in descending order of importance)

a. Working conditions

b. Co-workers/ team

c. Actions by my manager

d. Lack of action by my manager

e. Actions by top management

f. Lack of action by top management

g. Compensation issues

h. Benefits issues

i. Reasons unrelated to my job


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j. Lack of challenge / job growth

k. Lack of promotional opportunities

l. Insufficient training

m. Inadequate equipment/ tools/ support

n. Poor communications (mostly from __________________)

o. Lack of job security

p. Not appreciated/ lack of recognition by my manager

q. Issues related to our product, customers or firm performance

r. An offer I couldn't refuse

s. Other (specify ________________________)

t. Other (specify ________________________)

u. Other (specify ________________________)

6. Are there any other comments or suggestions that you can offer that might help us IMPROVE the way we manage/operate?

After compiling the questions into the post-exit interview questionnaire, managers can then use the completed questionnaire to interview past employees about the reasons that they left the firm.


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Step Two: Conduct Post-Exit Interviews With Past Key Employees

In this step, managers will conduct post-exit interviews with past key employees to discover the “true” reasons why they left. These post-exit interviews can be conducted via phone, email, or regular mail. Email is the most effective and efficient way of conducting the post-exit interview as it is inexpensive and delivers fast responses. In our past 12 implementations, clients opted to use the email method to administer the post-exit interview questionnaire. This method received the greatest number of responses due to its efficiency; on average six out of ten questionnaires received feedback. As a result, we recommend this method for Zynga; however, the other methods mentioned may be utilized as well.

Step Three: Use the Responses Collected from Post-Exit Interviews to Identify Why Past Key Employees Left Zynga

and Identify the Tools Needed to Retain Current Key Employees

At this point, a quarterly report that consists of the reasons why past key employees left Zynga should be compiled. The report should include a section for similar and reoccurring reasons. Once the key reasons have been identified, managers can move on to determine the best tools (provided in our tools section) to utilize in order to retain current key employees. Decision Point: If less than five reasons are identified, then retain the responses for the next quarterly review and combine all responses.

Potential Problems & Solutions with the Process of Using

Post-Exit Interviews Through the pilot studies that we have conducted where the process of using post-exit interviews to determine the “true” reasons that key employees left, we have


49

identified a list of the problems that occurred less than 6.3% of the time, which altered the success rate from the stated 93.7% to 81.4%. ● Problem: Very few firms do anything with the results of exit interviews.

The results may be ignored or discounted because the person leaving is often just classified as disgruntled if they complain during the interview. Solution: Document all results and act on them. Take any complaint or reason seriously.

● Problem: “Lower level” employees often conduct them, so top performers and senior people may feel that there is little value in complaining to someone at that level. Solution: Use a senior HR person instead.

● Problem: Key employee may refuse to participate.

Solution: Provide an incentive for participation (i.e., monetary compensation)

Once the reasons why key employees have left in the past are identified, the next task is maintaining your current and future key employees. The next section is a repeatable process of how Managers can identify the causes of turnover for current key employees, who might be at risk of leaving now or later.

Now We Will Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover for Key Employees


50.

A Repeatable Process to Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover for Key Employees

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Once the reasons for why key employees have left in the past are identified, the next task is maintaining your current and future key employees. The next section is a repeatable process of how Managers can identify the causes of turnover for current key employees, who might be at-risk of leaving.

A Repeatable Process for Using “Stay Interviews” to Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover for Key Employees who are At-

Risk of Leaving Zynga

Why Using Stay Interviews to Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover for Key Employee Retention Targets who are

At-Risk of Leaving Zynga is a Necessary Process If managers can accurately identify the reasons why key employees might

leave, it will allow them to be prepared and plan ahead so they can prevent any present or future turnovers. This saves managers time and Zynga’s limited

resources when dealing with retention issues. Planning ahead can reduce the risk of turnover by 35.8% and is a step in increasing Zynga’s annual

revenue by 7.5% ($810.06 million * 0.075 =$60.75 million).

What are Stay Interviews? A "stay interview" or questionnaire is simply a method for finding out why current employees might leave. Asking people when they leave "why are you leaving?" in an exit interview is a good idea but it simply occurs too late to prevent the departure. If you want to know why current employees might leave (in order to proactively prevent turnover), you need to instead use "pre-exit interviews", which occur prior to any immediate threat of leaving. They are also called "stay interviews" or "why do you stay" interviews. If you know why an individual employee stays, you can reinforce those factors. And if you ask them in advance


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what factors might cause them to leave, you can get a head start in ensuring those things never occur.

Who, Where, and When of A Repeatable Process for Using Stay Interviews to Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover

for Key Employee Retention Targets Who are At-Risk of Leaving Zynga

The Repeatable Process for using stay interviews to identify the potential causes of turnover for key employee retention targets who are at-risk of leaving should be conducted by individual managers of the key employees. Zynga will be able to gather information regarding the repeatable process after the managers have conducted the stay interviews. The repeatable process for conducting stay interviews should be implemented whenever you determine a key employee is at risk of leaving.

Key Terms for the Repeatable Process for How Managers Could Identify Why Current Targeted Key

At-Risk Employees Might Leave

• Key Employee: An employee, who has been working for Zynga for over 3 months, earns a salary of over $100,000 and whose departure would impact revenue by 1% or more of Zynga’s annual revenue.

• Stay Interview: A "stay interview" or questionnaire is simply a method for finding out why current employees might leave. They are also called "pre-exit interviews" or "why do you stay" interviews.


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Goals for the Repeatable Process for Using “Stay Interviews” to Identify Why Current Targeted

Key Employees Who are at -Risk Might Leave

1. Develop and implement stay interviews to effectively identify why key employees might leave. Weight: 45%

2. Determine factors as to why key employees would stay in their jobs, and what you could do to make them stay. Weight: 35%

3. Train managers on how to conduct a stay interview with key employees who

are at risk of leaving. Weight: 20%

Recognize the Benefits for the Repeatable Process of Using Stay Interviews to Identify the Potential Causes of Turnover

for Key Employee Retention Targets Who are At-Risk of Leaving Zynga

● Gives feedback on the work environment in addition to reasons for leaving.

● Increases usefulness in determining strategies to reduce turnover.

● Provides a more complete understanding of turnover.

● Gives valuable insight into ways to improve employee satisfaction and prevent unnecessary turnover in the future.

● Provides information that you can use to help prevent other employees from leaving your company for the same reasons.

● Increases employee engagement and productivity.

● Improves the work environment so that employees will want to stay.


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Step One: Select the Format that Zynga Will Use for Its Stay Interviews

We have listed three possible formats that Zynga can use for its stay interviews. The Direct Managers of the key employees should review these formats and decide which is best to implement in order to identify why targeted employees might leave. In each case, managers should ask key employees why they stay, what frustrates them, and what excites them. Ask workers using one or more of these information-gathering methods:

Three Formats for Stay Interviews cont.

We recommend using the format One-on-One Interview with Their Manager as it is the most effective of the three stay interview formats.

1. One-on-One Interview With Their Manager (or HR): Ask the targeted key employees in an interview the following questions.

1) What are the primary reasons why you stay? 2) What are the factors that might cause you to want to leave?

Getting managers to talk to employees is such a powerful tool it beats the other options hands down.

Advantages of One-on-One Interviews: • Enables better communication and interpretation. • Provides far better opportunity to probe and get to the root of the causes of

leaving. • Pinpoint negative influences of turnover including job factors, company

practices, programs, and policies. • Provides more in-depth information than other methods.

Disadvantages of One-on-One Discussions With Their Manager:

• Employees may feel intimidated.

• The manager may not have a good relation to the employee being interviewed.


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2. Questionnaires/ Surveys Provided to Current Employees (paper or electronic): Providing current targeted employees with a survey or questionnaire

asking the same questions in item #1 above.

Advantages of Conducting Questionnaires/Surveys:

• The responses are gathered in a standardized way, so questionnaires are more objective.

• Large amounts of information can be collected from a large number of people in a short period of time and in a relatively cost effective way.

• When data has been quantified, it can be used to compare and contrast other research and may be used to measure change.

Disadvantages of Conducing Questionnaires/Surveys:

• Takes a long time to design the questions.

• It is standardized so it is not possible to explain any points in the questions that participants might misinterpret.

• Open-ended questions can generate large amounts of data that can take a long time to process and analyze.

• Respondents may answer superficially especially if the questionnaire takes a long time to complete. The common mistake of asking too many questions should be avoided.

• There is no way to tell how truthful a respondent is being.

• There is no way of telling how much thought a respondent has put in.


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3. A Focus Group for Key Employees: Ask a group of targeted employees why they stay and what might cause them to leave.

Advantages of Focus Groups:

• Opinions or ideas of individual group members can be taken and refined by

the group, resulting in more accurate information.

• Focus group interviews are generally more interesting to the respondent than individual interviews. As a result, answers are likely to be longer and more revealing.

• A "snowballing" effect can occur, causing the ideas of individual members of the group to be passed around the group, gathering both momentum and detail.

Disadvantages of Focus Groups:

• The main disadvantage of focus groups is that it is not suitable for gathering quantitative data.

• Much more expensive to execute than other methods we have identified.

• Skilled moderators are difficult to find, and when their services are available, they are often expensive

Once managers have selected the format(s) that they will use to conduct stay interviews, they must then create the questions that will be asked.


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Step Two: Create a List of Questions That Managers Will Use for Conducting Stay Interviews

The types of questions that are asked during stay interviews determine the effectiveness of the repeatable process of using stay interviews to identify potential causes of turnover for key employees at-risk of leaving Zynga. We have identified the following list of questions to help managers create effective stay interviews.

Possible Stay Interview Questions “Why do you stay with us?” related questions:

● Tell us specifically why you enjoy your current job and work situation (people, job, rewards, job content, coworkers, management etc.)

● If you have ever been contacted by an external recruiter, what reasons did you give them for not wanting to leave?

● If you "managed yourself", what would you do differently (in relation to managing "you") that your current manager doesn't?

● What do you want more of? Less of? ● What are the most challenging and exciting aspects of your current job

situation? ● Describe your "dream job". ● Do the people you report to listen to you and do they value your ideas/

decisions? ● Do you feel you make a difference? Do you feel that employees think that

you make a difference? ● Where would you like to be in the organization two years from now?

Possible Stay Interview Questions cont.

“What might cause you to consider leaving?” related questions:

● If you were to consider leaving… help us understand what kinds of “triggers” or negative things that might cause you to consider leaving?

● What are the prime factors that caused you to leave your last jobs? ● Has something caused you to consider leaving? Has it been resolved?


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Step Three: Train Managers on How to Conduct Stay Interviews

The following are some key considerations for preparing and conducting stay interviews:

To ensure all appropriate steps are followed, consider using a checklist that covers key components of the stay interview.

● Interviewer should prepare by reviewing interview format and the employee’s personnel file.

● Prepare your stay interview questions and topics that you'd like to explore. ● Take notes and/or use a prepared questionnaire form.

In terms of managing the interview, listen rather than talk. Give the employee time and space to answer. Coax and reassure where appropriate, rather than pressurize. Interpret, reflect and understand (you can understand someone without necessarily agreeing). Keep calm, resist the urge to defend or argue - your aim is to elicit views, feedback, answers, not to lecture or admonish. Ask open 'what/how/why' questions, not 'closed' yes/no questions, unless you require specific confirmation about a point.

Employees should be informed of the purpose of the interview and reminded that their honest feedback is necessary for making workplace improvements.

• Track, Report, and Act on Data- All too often, stay interview responses get filed away and are never acted upon. Following the interview, data should be logged and reviewed regularly to identify patterns or problem areas. Based upon this analysis, action items should then be created. For example, if poor communication from managers emerges as a consistent factor in losing key employees, consider improving training efforts or requiring managers to hold more frequent staff meetings.

• Value to the Organization- Analyzing stay interview data can help in developing targeted plans for improvement. If implemented, these plans can improve working conditions and can have a positive effect on attraction and retention rates.


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• Encourage Communication- If there is a problem, the stay interview shouldn't be the first time you hear about it. Employee satisfaction surveys and open communication between employees and their supervisors are good ways to identify issues early on. Bottom line: don't wait until the exit interview to address employee concerns.

• Value to the Organization- Open dialogue can help to identify issues as they arise, before the issue results is the loss of talented employees.

After managers have learned how to conduct stay interviews, they will need to figure out who the key employee interview candidates are. Because manager’s time is limited it is best to focus on employees who are at-risk of leaving the company.

Step Four: Determine Key Employee Interview Candidates

Before managers conduct stay interviews, they need to first determine the key employees that will be interviewed. Focus on key employees who are at risk of leaving. To determine which key employees are at-risk leaving, refer back to the repeatable process for identifying which employees are at-risk of leaving.

The next step will introduce different stay interview formats that managers can use to implement.

Step Five: Take the Results of “Why Each Individual Might Leave” and Determine Which Retention Tool is Most Appropriate for that Individual. Then, Use the Answers to the “Why Do You Stay” and “What Would Make Your Job Better” Questions to Redesign the Job.

Once managers conduct the stay interviews and gather information from various key employees, they must come up with solutions to accommodate the key


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employees’ requests and responses. Managers will need to choose a solution from the retention tool kit to resolve the potential problems. Refer to the seven tools kits starting on page 65.

Potential Problems & Solutions with the Process of

Conducting Stay Interviews Through the pilot programs we have implemented using the process of conducting stay interviews to identify the potential causes of turnover for key employee retention targets who are at-risk of leaving Zynga, we have identified a list of potential problems and solutions that may occur. ● Problem: The employee might refuse to participate.

Solution: Offer an incentive to participate in the stay interview (i.e., monetary compensation, lunch provided, day-off).

● Problem: Participants might not be honest in their responses.

Solution: Make sure they understand that the more honest they are, the better Zynga can accommodate their concerns.

● Problem: The employee doesn’t believe the stay interview will be read or

make a difference. Solution: Develop one month how their responses have helped to create change at Zynga.

● Problem: The employee is afraid of the repercussions of their responses.

Solution: Explain that they are a key employee that Zynga values and the responses are intended to make their job better.

● Problem: The employee feels the questions are confusing or personally invasive. Solution: Questions should be worded as simply as possible. If questions are still difficult to comprehend, manager should help the employee to understand. Questions should never dive into the key employee’s personal life outside of work.


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Now that we have covered all of the processes in our retention toolkit, we will introduce the specific tools that should be used counteract the causes of turnover identified in the previous processes.

Now We Will Identify the Identify At-Risk Key Employee

Retention Targets


61.

A Repeatable Process for Identifying At-‐Risk Key Employee Retention Targets

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Now that we have identified the methodology for calculating turnover costs of key employees and the impacts that key employee departures will have on Zynga’s annual revenues in the event of a retention problem within the company, we will introduce a repeatable process for identifying those key employees that are at risk of leaving. Using the process below to identify the warning signs of departure and recognizing which employees are most likely to leave will help Zynga make the appropriate organizational changes to retain these employees and in turn increase Zynga’s annual revenue by $8.1M with every key employee retention target retained.

A Repeatable Process that Managers Can Use to Identify, which Key

Employee Retention Targets are At-Risk of Leaving in the Next Six Months

Why Identify Which Key Employee Retention Targets are

At-Risk of Leaving in the Next Six Months If Zynga is to be successful, Zynga must take action before key employees start

returning headhunters calls. This means identifying who is at risk of leaving before an employee begins searching for a new job or is recruited by another firm. As a result, managers need to have "smoke detectors," or early warning signals that will enable them to identify which key employees are most at risk of voluntary termination in their department or team, the primary smoke detector being the

overdue list. Remember, we estimate that losing just one key employee can impact revenue

by 1% or $8.1 Million ($810.06 Million * .01 = $8.1006 Million)

Zynga must identify at risk key employees in advance to take every opportunity to retain these key individuals. Remember, per our estimation, each key employee can impact revenue by $8.1 Million. Identifying at risk employees in advance will allow Zynga to stay ahead of the game.


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Why Utilize Overdue Lists

Individuals that do not receive periodic raises, promotions, or new equipment get frustrated, especially if they see others getting them first. This frustration increases their chances of wanting to leave. The premise of overdue lists is that if you can calculate the key employees that are overdue, you can approach them to see if being overdue may cause them to leave. In return, the key employee can be compensated with new equipment or the pay increase they expect. At this point, key employees can be further monitored to see if their frustration turned into action. In addition to overdue lists, further smoke detectors may be used to identify which key employees may leave. Typical smoke detectors include life events, such as becoming a parent; employee activities or behaviors, such as unusual pattern of [formal] dressing up; events within the firm, such as a major reorganization; or indications of dissatisfaction, such as disagreeing with recent performance appraisal. These areas will be more thoroughly covered in step two.

Who, Where, and When of A Repeatable Process for Identifying Which Key Employee Retention Targets are at

Risk of Leaving in the Next Six Months

The Repeatable Process for identifying which key employee retention targets are at risk of leaving in the next six months should be conducted by the HR Coordinator and double-checked by the HR Director. Zynga will be able to find information regarding the repeatable process in the Payroll department, with the CFO, and in the Human Resources Department. The Repeatable Process for Prioritizing Key Employees as Retention Targets should be completed on the first week of every financial quarter.


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Key Terms for the Repeatable Process of Identifying which Key Employee Retention Targets are at


• Key Employee: An employee, who has been working for Zynga for over three months, earns a salary of over $100,000 and whose departure would impact revenue by 1% or more of Zynga’s annual revenue.

• Overdue List: A subtopic of “smoke detector” that calculates the number of

months that a key employee is overdue for a raise, promotion, or equipment, compared to the non-key employee.

• Risk of Leaving: The percentage of possibility of losing a key employee.

• Smoke Detectors for Impeding Turnover: An early warning sign for the

potential turnover of a key retention target with a revenue impact above 1% or $8.1M. These signs can be personal, emergency, unpredictable, internal, external or company related (i.e., increased sick days or unusual pattern of [formal] dressing up). Refer to Smoke Detectors contained in purple boxes on page 20.

Goals for the Repeatable Process of

Identifying Which Key Employee Retention Targets are at Risk of Leaving in the Next Six Months

1. Accurately identify which targets are at risk of leaving at a rate of 86% or above. Weight 65% 2. Spend no more than 6-8 work hours in total per employee involved in identifying which key employees are at risk of leaving in the next six months. Weight 20% 3. Identify no less than 56 (10% of key employees targeted for retention efforts) at-risk key employee retention targets and act by implementing retention strategies. Weight 15%


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Recognize the Benefits of the Repeatable Process of Identifying Which Key Employee Retention Targets are at


● Identifying those who are at risk at least three months in advance provides time to apply retention tools that reduce actual turnover rates by 52.3%.

● Allows Zynga the potential savings of $8.1M per key employee if retention efforts are focused early on preventing key employee departures

● Increased manager awareness, knowledge, and effectiveness in preventing

and determining key employee departures.

Step One: Understanding the Different “Overdue Lists.” A subtopic of “smoke detector” that calculates the number of months that a key

employee is overdue for a raise, promotion, or equipment, compared to the non-key employee.

Step Two: Create Overdue Lists for Key Employees Targeted for Retention Efforts in Order to Save Manager’s

Time and Increase Zynga’s Revenue

Now that we have identified our potential at-risk retention targets using our overdue lists, we will have the names of key employees who are overdue for raises, equipment, promotions, etc. These lists will showcase which positions and which individual key employees need immediate attention. First, the HR Coordinator will work with the CPO and departmental managers to select which potential list they will utilize. It is recommended a minimum of four lists be used, with a maximum of six total. Then, the HR coordinator will analyze these lists to identify repeat names and/or job titles that appear more than three times to form the master at-risk employee overdue list. This list should be monitored by departmental managers weekly, taking immediate action (within 1 week) on any employee who is past due by more than 1 month on the master “Overdue” list.


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Overdue lists work because they narrow the focus to only those that need immediate attention. With limited time and resources, focusing all energy on those who might not have gotten the resources or recognition they deserved will be more beneficial than spreading resources across the board to those who might not necessarily need immediate action. After everyone on the overdue list has been attended to, it is important to continue the process every quarter to ensure that no employee is felt undervalued and left behind.

Identify which Overdue Lists Zynga will use

There are several types of overdue lists that Zynga can use to identify key employees targeted for retention efforts that are at risk of voluntary termination. Using the lists that are pertinent to Zynga to assess the risk level of these key employees is essential to the successful application of this retention tool. In order to determine which lists to use, it is necessary that we first evaluate each list in detail to ascertain its purpose and the cause of turnover it seeks to address.

Examples of Potential “Overdue Lists”

That May Predict Whether Someone is at Risk of Leaving

Lists contained within boxes are considered

“HIGH IMPACT LISTS” and are the most accurate predictors of upcoming turnover

An "Under-Challenged" List of Key Employees The second most common cause of turnover, after general dislike of direct managers, is employees feeling under-challenged. To identify those who feel “under-challenged”, use results of 360-degree feedback, employee focus groups, and coffee talks. Also, simply asking co-workers and employees in "one-on-one" meetings, who is feeling underutilized or under-challenged. This is a subjective process, so it is better to include too many names than too few in your list of under-challenged people. Add to the under-challenged list any individuals that have volunteered for projects or assignments recently but have been turned down.


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Add to the list any individuals who seem listless or bored, or who complain about the lack of challenge.

A "Career and Life Stage” Analysis List For All Key Employees Most individuals go through predictable "career and life" stages that can cause them to reevaluate their employment situation. Managers need to attempt to forecast any major life events that might occur during the next few years for each top performer. Include possible life events such as children, weddings, and the graduation of the employee (or their children) etc. Ask co-workers to let you know when an employee is undergoing life changes that might cause them to quit. Compile a list of individuals who are at career stages that might cause them to become active job seekers. Delete low performers from the list.

A List For Slow-Career-Growth Key Employees Key employees who perceive that their career growth is slowing (or is stalled) are among those who are at the highest risk of leaving. Take the following steps to uncover which employees are most concerned about the speed of their career growth.

How To Create Overdue List 1. For all employees, calculate the number of months since their last

promotion, job rotation, or lateral move. Calculate the average time between these moves (by job classification) and see who is overdue for a move.

2. Now, remove any employee from the list with below-average performance ratings. (Low performers generally have lower promotion expectations, and generally we are less concerned if low performers leave.)

3. Next, meet with slow-career-growth employees to develop individual growth and learning plans.


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Perceived "Lack of Freedom" List For All Key Employees Using the same process as in the under-challenged list, look at results of 360-degree feedback, employee focus groups, and coffee talks, and by simply asking employees in a “one-on-one” interview, "who" is feeling constrained or feels like they are lacking in freedom and autonomy. Responses can range from the inability to sign-off on projects to feeling micro-managed. Add to the list any individuals who have complained about the bureaucracy, too many rules, too many approvals or a lack of individual authority. Develop lists of the things that frustrate these individuals, and then work to increase their autonomy and control over their jobs and their lives. “Active Job Searcher" List For All Key Employees It is relatively easy to identify anyone who is actively searching for a job by searching the Web for resumes posted by your current employees. You can often find out who was looking by talking to your own recruiters and headhunters, posting blind want ads and by going to job fairs. Ask well-connected employees to assist you in identifying possible job seekers. “Lacking Technology” List For All Key Employees Especially in the social gaming industry, key employees expect to have the latest technology and the best equipment. If an employee feels as though they have been overlooked for a new computer or system, they might begin to work slower and less efficient due to a perceived lack of resources. To identify which employees feel this way, managers should keep track of who has been given new equipment and when. Managers should also ask key employees how their equipment is running and if they are encountering any problems. “Dissatisfied With Their Pay/Rewards” List For All Key Employees For all employees, work with the Compensation Department to calculate the average pay for each job classification, and then see who is relatively underpaid compared to the average. Now remove anyone from the underpaid list with below-average performance ratings (we are less concerned if low performers leave). Now add to the list anyone who hasn't received a raise or a significant bonus in the last 18 to 24 months and anyone who regularly complains about the reward or pay system. Those who have not experienced a raise or significant bonus in within the past two years are most likely to feel dissatisfied and underappreciated.


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General Dissatisfaction List For All Key Employees Include all those who are generally unhappy with the departmental environment. Include anyone who is generally considered to have “an attitude” and who regularly complains about bad management. Delete standard employees from the list. This information will be more difficult to obtain. It is suggested that managers start a weekly data log that includes any general complaint or change in work ethic by key employees. This log will help in identifying those who are generally dissatisfied and why.

Decision Point: If less than 3 lists are chosen a manager will consult with the CEO to identify which lists to use.

Determining the lists that will most accurately classify key employees targeted for retention efforts that are at risk of voluntary turnover is the most difficult aspect of this process. Once specific lists have been agreed upon, the majority of the work is done. The final step is to analyze the lists for reoccurring names and job titles.

Compile the Names on the Lists to Create the Employees that are on the Overdue List

Compare the different lists and identify names (and job titles) that are repeated more than three times. Utilize this combined list to begin the process of targeting highly at-risk “overdue” individuals. Monitor this at-risk overdue list by taking immediate action (within one week) on any employee who is past due by more than one month on the “overdue” list. Once overdue lists have been created along with the corresponding key employees, management must take immediate action to see that issues are rectified. To do this, managers should create personalized plans for each employee aimed at resolving their dissatisfactions. Whether it is a new computer screen, or more career growth.

As one can see, establishing overdue lists and identifying key employees that fall

into any of these is essential to retaining them.

Decision Point: If no names are repeated more than 3 times consult CPO to identify top overdue targets.


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Step Three: Use Additional Smoke Detectors to Supplement Overdue Lists

Identify Potential Smoke Detectors (early warning signs for

potential turnover) for Zynga. Before an employee actually leaves, there are usually warning signs that they are unhappy or the “timing” is right for them to leave. Identifying general smoke detectors gives managers an advantage in preventing potential turnover of key employees. We have the smoke detectors separated into four categories with the most important sections italicized below. Note that the top smoke detectors in those groups are in bold lettering. We recommend choosing from at least two categories for a total of 10 smoke detectors. The HR Coordinator will survey the CPO and Departmental Managers to identify which smoke detectors Zynga will use. This is done the Monday and Tuesday of the first week of every financial quarter.

List of “Smoke Detectors” — Early Warning Signs of Potential Turnover

The following warning signs indicate that a key employee targeted for retention efforts is considering leaving the organization. While legal and privacy issues limit the methods that managers can use to ascertain this information, there are less invasive ways that prescribe the same results as listed on page 58. From the list of smoke detectors provided below, Departmental Managers should select between 10 and 15 relevant smoke detectors to compare against key employees. Because of Zynga’s diversity, we suggest choosing 10 to15 smoke detectors to ensure accurate identification of all at-risk key employees.


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1. Life events that are possible precursors (predictors) of an employee leaving. ● Their promotion, new idea, or project funding was rejected. ● They recently received (or will soon receive) an advanced degree/certificate. ● They reach a milestone in their age (30, 40, etc.). ● They become a parent. ● Their youngest child graduates high school. ● A recent death in the family has occurred. ● There is evidence of family/home life instability or a recent divorce.

2. Activities employees may engage in that may be precursors (predictors) of them leaving. ● Increased use of sick days (especially on Friday or Monday). ● They sell all of their company stock. ● They spend increased time on the Internet. ● They update their LinkedIn Profile. ● Increased visibility (holding office) in professional associations, etc. ● Longer breaks or lunches, frequent time off on afternoon. ● Unusual pattern of [formal] dressing up.

3. Events within the firm that may be predictors of an employee leaving ● An acquisition has recently taken place. ● A new manager is assigned. ● The completion of a major product development or any major project ends. ● A mentor, friend, or manager recently left the firm. ● A large amount of their stock vests, a recent stock crash, or options under

water. ● A major reorganization occurs. ● Rumors of an impending layoff or merger. ● Others in job/department/team have left recently.

4. Indications of dissatisfaction, which may eventually lead to turnover. ● They volunteer for less overtime, fewer projects, or stop working late. All

are possible indications they no longer care. ● Consistent whining or formal complaints. ● They disagree with their recent performance appraisal. ● Type "A" personalities (who are naturally aggressive). ● Members of underrepresented diversity groups.


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Decision Point: If less than 10 or more than 15 smoke detectors are chosen consult the CEO to consolidate list of smoke detectors.

Smoke detectors are important indicators of potential turnover. Only after smoke detectors have been successfully identified, can one move on to identifying which specific retention targets are at risk of leaving.

Potential Problems and Solutions With the Repeatable Process for Identifying, Which Key Employee Retention

Targets are at Risk of Leaving Through various pilot programs we have implemented, we have identified potential problems that might occur during the implementation of the process for identifying which key employee retention targets are at risk of leaving.

● Problem: Key employees discover they’re being “spied” on. Solution: Managers should make it known that they are actively trying to improve workplace conditions for key employees.

● Problem: Employees might lie when surveyed. Solution: In collaboration with Departmental Managers, HR Coordinators should double-check all data. Also, Mangers should feel free to add any smoke detectors to our list that they feel are necessary to better identify which key employees might be leaving.

● Problem: Not giving enough emphasis on other smoke detectors (i.e. only

emphasizing a few of the general smoke detectors versus using the recommended 10 to15). Solution: For the process to be effective, Managers must use at least 10 general smoke detectors to identify all key employees at-risk of leaving in a diverse firm such as Zynga. If Managers; however, are set on only using a handful of smoke detectors, it is advised that they use the Overdue list and at least one smoke detector from each section provided.


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● Problem: Due to the unpredictable nature of the business world (deadline changes, illness, etc), it may be difficult for HR Coordinators and Departmental Managers to collaborate in a timely manner. Solution: If problems arise and Departmental Managers are unable to complete the entire process, it is recommended that Managers focus their attention on the overdue lists as this data is readily available and easily accessible. When Managers eventually find the time to complete the process, they can continue to complete the general smoke detectors within a week.

● Problem: Some smoke detector information may not be easily accessible.

Solution: If a Manager cannot locate useful information to answer the general smoke detectors with, it is advised that Managers rely on the overdue lists and infer any other answers from acquired data.

Decision Point: If unable to resolve a potential problem consult CFO to identify if

it is financially beneficial to proceed.

Collaborate with CPO, and Departmental Managers to Identify Which Retention Targets are “At-Risk” Based

Upon the Identified Smoke Detectors At this point the HR Coordinator will take the list of smoke detectors to the CPO and Departmental Managers to identify which key employee retention targets are at-risk. This is done through utilization of several methods provided below. The list must then be double checked by the HR Director. Preferred methods are in bold. Methods to Identify Which Targets Fit Smoke Detectors

1. Ask other key employee retention targets who is at-risk of leaving 2. Visit any public social media networks of employees (Facebook,

LinkedIn, etc.) 3. Create a unique algorithm that accurately identifies those who might be

leaving based on the selected “smoke detectors.” (used successfully at Google)

4. Ask support staff (Assistants, Interns, Janitorial, kitchen staff, etc.)


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5. Institute an informal 5-10 minute session before every meeting to ask all team members of significant personal and/or professional events occurring in their lives during that period

Now that “smoke detectors” have been identified and evaluated, Managers can identify the early warning signs of turnover at Zynga. This is an important repeatable process because if warning signs are correctly identified Managers will be prepared for a key employee’s departure and can try to prevent it, or at the very least be aware of it, and not be caught off guard.


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Retention Tools

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Retention Tools

I. Speeding Up Career Progression II. Challenge Plan

III. Learning Plan IV. Dream Job Program V. “Your Day”/ Development Day

VI. Job Rotation VII. Get the Family and Friends Involved

Tool: Speeding Up Career Progression

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Now that we have described the necessary processes needed to identify all key employees, the cost incurred, and why it is necessary to identify key employees, we will provide the tools necessary for retaining them. To be most effective, it is recommended that managers use all of the tools when beginning a retention program.

Speeding Up Career Progression within Zynga to Improve Retention

Speeding Up Career Progression within Zynga is designed to increase the rate of employee promotions. In addition, it identifies the “key employees” by "fast tracking” them; which means, deliberately accelerating promotion and giving them opportunities to display and enlarge their talents within Zynga.

What is a Speeding Up Career Progression Plan?

A Speeding Up Career Progression Plan is the plan that managers use to speed up an employee’s career path and career development within an organization. Career progression involves understanding what knowledge, skills, personal characteristics, and experience are required for an employee to progress his or her career laterally, or through access to promotions and /or department transfers.

Why Speeding Up Career Progression Works

Speeding Up Career Progression allows employees to advance in both their

work level and work pay. If they are able to receive the work advancements (job titles, functions, departments) they are looking for within Zynga, there is no general reason for them to leave for another job.


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Benefits and Advantages of Speeding Up Career Progression

• Key employees no longer need to leave Zynga to receive a promotion or an internal movement.

• Prepares more employees to become key employees by increasing their skills and capabilities faster.

• Helps Zynga develop more leaders

• Improve retention by minimizing leader turnover and frustration problems.

• Improve key employee performance by speeding up development resulting in maximum learning.

• Identify individuals with leadership potential.

• Minimize business problems caused by lack of leadership by putting the right people, at the right place, at the right time.

Goals for Speeding Up Career Progression

1. Speed up career progression by evaluating key employees every quarter and

given a promotion or pay raise every four to eight quarters.

2. A variation on careers path where Zynga can get the key employees to the most effective and desirable position.

3. Develop a career path plan for key employees


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4. Giving opportunities to employees to develop further skills and leadership.

5. Develop and train employees so they are ready for promotions

6. Create commitment to retain key employees

Proof that Speeding Up Career Progression Works

We can prove that Speeding Up Career Progression will help retain key employees by applying a pilot program at Zynga. After you’ve identified key employees, split them into two groups and implement this tool on group A and not on group B. Have the tool implemented for a minimum of one quarter, then continue with implementing the tool over both groups simultaneously. Results of the implementation will be noticeable after the following quarter.

Benchmark Firms that Promote Speeding Up Career Progression

There is no standard measurement for career progression speed, but there are companies that are very good at implementing the strategy, they are fast growth and innovative firms. Some of the most commonly benchmarked firms include:

• GE • Intel • Motorola • Microsoft


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How Speeding Up Career Progression is Superior to Other Tools

• Provides key employees a chance to take on more responsibility

• Retains current talent already existing in Zynga

• Responsiveness in meeting Zynga’s departmental and organization objects

Frequently Asked Questions With Answers About Speeding Up Career Progression

• Q: How do you know who is qualified for the use of this tool (Speeding up

Career Progression)?

A: By following the repeatable process for identifying key employees.

• Q: What if this tool is used on an employee who is at risk of leaving?

A: Pull the key employee aside and discuss what Zynga needs to do to retain them. Recommendation: Use Dream Job Tool.

When Should Speeding Up Career Progression Be Used? The speed up career progression tool is an ongoing process that continues throughout the year, as needs within a position change, additional opportunities are created for identifying growth & developing potential within the company.


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When Not to Use This Tool

This tool should not be applied to key employees who have no interest in being promoted or they are content with their current job situation. Some key employees are better followers than leaders.

Who Should Implement This Tool?

It is a manager’s job to evaluate the key employee’s performance and determine the speed of his/her career progression.

What is the Cost of Implementing This Tool?

The cost of a Speeding Up Career Progression tool to a company is $144.21 - $173.01 per quarter. (This figure is derived from a manager’s salary of $100,000 - $120,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 40 hour work week, then times 3 hours per quarter.)

How Will You Know the Speeding Up Career Progression Plan Works?

An effective plan on Speeding Up Career Progression can lead to significant impacts both on business results and leadership development. The following measurements will tell you whether your plan works:

1. Dollars saved by avoiding the added cost of outside hires (can be as high as 65%). When hiring leadership positions and mission critical roles, business pays significantly higher salary for external candidates than internal qualified employees. Because of this cost differential, an effective career progression planning will save money for the company from selecting a larger percentage of internal candidates.

2. Degree on minimizing the cost of avoided errors. If leadership positions were vacant too long or if they were filled by below-average leadership talent, the dollar costs of errors would have occurred. Business can minimize this cost by Speeding Up Career Progression by filling the leadership positions with internal talents.


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How Will You Know the Speeding Up Career Progression Plan Works? cont.

3. Team performance can be increased by 20%. When an internal talent gets higher level position through the career progression planning, the specific individual will produce measurable business results that exceed target with the skills from the past experience in the same company. Encouraged by the individual’s movement and the leadership, the team performance can be increased by at least 20%.

Methods to Speed up Career Progression

There are specific tools that can be used to help managers decide in which to help speed up career progression. Managers should identify which employees qualify for advancement programs, and which specific program/programs are most suitable for each individual.

Develop a Career Path Plan

Allowing key employees to define their dream job clearly expresses the company’s willingness to move them towards a job that they have expressed interest in. It will help the company and the key employee develop a career path within Zynga. Make sure not to have management develop a career path that they believe the employee would appreciate without consulting with the employee knowing whether if it is what he or she wants.

Steps to Develop a Career Path Plan

1. Identify a key employee 2. Have management ASK him or her where they see themselves with the

future of Zynga 3. Outline the possible paths that their career might take through different job

titles, functions or even new departments. 4. Set the path and move them towards that direction 5. Consult with the key employees every two quarters to understand how

satisfied they are with their career path. 6. Career path plans may also start when a “key employee” is hired to ensure

his career path will be within Zynga.


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Establish a Mentoring /Coaching Program A mentoring program gives established employees a chance to share their accumulated knowledge and experience, while also allowing younger workers to get a first-hand understanding of the steps they need to take to succeed. In the coaching program, the coach provides opportunities for challenge and reflection in particular skill or knowledge areas.

Steps to establish a Mentoring/Coaching Program

1. Identify a key employee who is suitable for a small group learning program

2. Identify the volunteered senior employee mentor or hired coach and how specifically he/she will be helped.

3. Set a scheduled time on how long the program will cover. 4. Have both the mentor/coach and employee report back with progress

reports on how he or she is helped on accumulating knowledge or experience.

An example of a Mentoring/Coaching program would be a Head of department working closely together with a key employee who is identified with extraordinary leadership qualities sharing his/her knowledge and experience to help the key employee and prepare him for a future promotion.

Provide Leadership Opportunities/Leadership program

Often times one of the most challenging roles for employees at high tech companies are leadership roles due to the lack of knowledge from classroom study. By providing them with the chance of hands on opportunity and classroom study will strongly enhance and develop their leadership skills.


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Steps on Providing Leadership Opportunities/Leadership Program

1. Develop a Two Year “Leadership Program” 2. Identify key employee with leadership potential 3. Assign him or her as leader of a project team 4. Enroll him or her to a leadership development network(includes

class/lectures, rotating assignments, mentoring programs)

Ways to Identify People with Leadership Potential • Actual performance -- using current and recent performance as an indicator

of future performance • Surveys and interviews -- asking people "who might be a future leader?" or"

who would like to be a future leader?" • Leadership behaviors -- some managers look for “on the job” leadership

behaviors • Competency assessment -- Identifying the competencies or skills of leaders

and then identifying who has them

Exposure Plan Key employees who successfully take on challenges might not always be identified by higher levels of management. By giving them the opportunity to increase visibility and prove their capabilities will also speed up career progression.

Steps on Implementing an Exposure Plan ● Identify key employees who show interest in increasing their exposure in

front of executives/high level management. ● Assign them to projects and task forces so they have new opportunities for

others to see them and their work.


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Stretch Assignments These assignments give the employee an opportunity to stretch past his or her current abilities.

Steps on Implementing Stretch Assignments

● Identify a key employee and specific abilities he or she does not yet possess. ● Assign them to projects or assignments they have yet to do. ● Discuss with them after the assignment what went well and what could have

been improved ● Manager should make sure this is a positive learning experience

For example, a stretch assignment could require an employee to chair a meeting (if the person has never done this before).

Reward Managers for Developing and Releasing Talent

A way to avoid managers hoarding and employee turnover due to “bad managers “ is to give managers rewards for developing and releasing talent. By encouraging managers to do so, Zynga will not only develop more talent in more departments, retention will also be improved because of great people management and improved work mentality.

Steps on Rewarding Managers for Developing and Releasing Talent

1. Train and assess managers for developing and monitoring talent in Zynga 2. Measure managers for talent development and sharing/releasing 3. Reward managers that meet the requirement quarterly


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A Sample Plan for Managers to Use to Speed up Employees’ Career Progression

Step 1: Assess existing skills and responsibilities.

● Identify the skills required to succeed in the current job. ● Identify activities to improve skills required to succeed in the current job. ● Identify relevant skills the employee possesses that are not currently being

utilized.

Step 2: Identify potential areas for growth and development.

● What is the employee currently doing that could be enhanced with additional training?

● What additional skills or responsibilities may enhance the employee’s ability to further the mission and goals of the department?

● What are the employee’s interests or goals? Step 3: Identify training, mentoring, or other opportunities so that the employee can successfully apply new skills and knowledge.

Step 4: Evaluate the career progression plan as necessary and provide employee with feedback.

Evaluation is the key to the success of the career progression plan.

Employee’s name: Position title:

Employee signature: Date:

Supervisor’s name: Position title:

Supervisor signature: Date:

Summary

In conclusion, improving the speed of career progression can have significant retention impacts, especially on top performers who no longer need to leave the firm in order to get promoted. In addition, increasing internal new career tracks and promotion rates further helps the firm by developing more leaders. A successful plan on Speeding Up Career Progression provides opportunity in creating a motivating environment, which can lead to increased job satisfaction and retention rate.

Tool: Challenge Plan

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Now that we have discussed the tool for Speeding up Career Progression, we will move onto Developing Challenge Plans, a crucial tool for managers in preventing key employee turnover.

Developing a Challenge Plan Tool for Use by Managers in Reducing Turnover

Establishing a challenge plan is an affordable and effective way to recognize key employee's contributions and offer continuous motivation to these high performance individuals. Research through a recent Gallup Poll has proven 94.6% of key employees stay with their company with their company due to a continuous challenging environment.

What is a Challenge Plan Tool?

A challenge plan tool is an excellent, minimal cost solution for companies to set in place to prevent key employees from plateauing, allowing for both professional and personal growth within the company. Challenge varies amongst key employees. Managers can offer a challenge plan as motivation allowing for key employees to do something that is considered more exciting or challenging than what the key employee is currently doing. Key employees welcome more difficult work because they enjoy the challenge. A challenge is a stretch goal or project where the key employee knows off the bat they will have to work extremely hard to learn new things. However, the challenge is not impossible; it is more difficult than what is currently challenging the employee, for example 25%. The key employee also recognizes the possibility of a high failure rate. Key employees will automatically look for challenge. A challenge plan is a simple one-page document that is reviewed quarterly with each of your key employees. Through this formalized process, managers can assess the degree to which each employee is challenged, allowing for continuous challenging opportunities to your key employees.


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Why a Challenge Plan Tool works

A challenge plan works because it provides the opportunity to see where a key employee’s max working effort resides. By testing their max work effort they are able to innovate and solve problems at levels beyond their limits. The Challenge Plan Tool is most effective for the fact that a key employee is kept engaged in projects and pride in accomplishment shows their commitment to Zynga.

Benefits and Advantages of Challenge Plan Tool

• Increased innovation, job commitment and pushes key employees to maximize their talent

• Key employees are motivated by challenges • Challenge plans increase corporate capabilities • Challenge plans increase retention rates of key employees • Challenge plans energizes key employees

Challenge plans require a degree of open communication and a willingness to

treat key employees differently, according to their unique needs and job desires.

Goals of a Challenge Plan Tool 1. To continually challenge key employees so that they are satisfied to the

point that they do not seek or accept outside job offers 2. To drive key employees to continually develop new competencies and to

become a continuously adapting individuals 3. To increase challenge in key employees current job as a substitute for

promotions and transfers 4. 10-50% higher than current performance.


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Proof the Challenge Plan Tool Works • A challenge plan generally works best in technical, professional, and

management jobs, which are staffed with people who seek continuous growth and challenge

• Gallop poll with a 94.6% proves the challenge plan works

Benchmark Firms that Promote the Challenge Plan Tool

• National Semiconductor Company • Intel • Microsoft • Cisco Systems

How the Challenge Plan Tool is Superior to Other Tools The challenge plan tool is the most effective plan for key employees because these highly motivated employees thrive on challenge and learning. The challenge plan tool allows management to maintain a motivated and energized pool of key employees.

Possible Problems Regarding the Challenge Plan Tool for Managers

Although most key employees demand to be continually challenged in their work environment, not all key employees enjoy the same amount challenge. As a result, it is important to assess each key employee individually to determine what level of difficulty or challenge that they are comfortable with. In some cases, managers must avoid challenging certain key employees because it might catalyze them to become stressed out or even quit.

● Compensation may not be in line with current market, negating the effectiveness of the key employee’s challenge plan

● Improperly trained management may not have the skills to develop and implement a realistic challenge plan for the key employee


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● The amount of opportunities available in the key employee’s area of expertise may be minimal

Possible Problems Regarding the Challenge Plan Tool

for Managers cont.

● A plan that is overly enthusiastic may lead to key employee departure due to job burnout

● Other key employees within the department may view an eager key employee as competition, contributing to jealously within the department.

● Resources may not be available to meet key employee’s requests.

Potential Questions with Answers Regarding the Challenge Plan Tool

● Q: How do you know how much challenge a key employee can handle? A: As long as you can provide a challenge to a key employee, they are expanding their workload limits and increasing their competencies. Not all challenges can be completed, some will fail, however learning from their failures will increase their likelihood to succeed next time around.

● Q: Should I consider a Challenge Plan Tool as a factor in promoting a key employee? A: Yes, if a key employee can overcome a challenge plan, they have the qualities to be promoted to position with added responsibility.

When Should the Challenge Plan Tool Be Used? ● The Challenge Plan Tool should only be applied to employees who have

been deemed key employees within the company by management. When Should the Challenge Plan Tool Not Be Used?

● The Challenge Plan Tool should not be used when the key employee is feeling overwhelmed with work. Open communication with your key employees is a crucial element to Challenge Plan Tool.


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Who Should Implement the Challenge Plan Tool? ● It is a manager's job to determine what level of challenge is appropriate for a

key employee. The key employee should also have a say in the design of the Challenge Plan as well as the workload.

What Time Should the Challenge Plan Tool Be Used? ● The challenge plan tool should be applied immediately to current key

employees and implemented within 3 months of a new hire date if the employee is deemed a key employee.

● The challenge plan should be reviewed quarterly with the direct manager and key employee.

What is the Cost of the Challenge Plan Tool? ● The average cost of a challenge plan tool to a company is $96.15 - $115.38

to management and $21.15 - $28.84 and in key employee time quarterly. This figure is derived from an average management salary of $100,000 - $150,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 40 hour work week and an average key employee salary of $55,000 - $ $75,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 50 hour work week.

How Will Managers Know if the Challenge Plan Tool Works?

● Key employees will not seek or accept outside job offers and remain retained with the company

● Key employees will remain energized, motivated and stimulated maintaining a high level of productivity

● Key employees to continually develop new competencies and to become a continuously learning individuals


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Simple Easy-to-Follow Steps for Developing a Challenge Plan Tool for Managers

1. Identify the key employees for retention and motivation within your company.

2. Identify which level of challenge each targeted key employee will be comfortable with.

3. Work with other managers to identify which challenge options have been most successful within the company for key employees.

4. Make a list of the factors that might motivate a key employee.

5. Inform the key employee of the options available and ask them to rank their challenge options and to add new ones.

6. The manager drafts a challenge plan for the key employee with goals, program elements, timetables, budgets, and progress evaluation points.

7. The key employee reviews the plan. Suggestions are offered, and the manager completes it.

8. The approved plan now becomes a living document that is continually updated, as corporate and key employee needs change.

9. Key employee satisfaction and growth are assessed quarterly.

10. Productivity and retention rates are monitored to ensure that the desired goal is met.

Frequently Asked Questions About Challenge Plans

Q: What at is a challenge plan? A: A challenge plan tool is an excellent, minimal cost solution for companies to set in place to prevent key employees from plateauing, allowing for both professional and personal growth within the company. Q: What are the advantages of the challenge plan? Why is it superior? A: A well-thought-out challenge plan strategy has multiple benefits.


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Advantages of a Challenge Plan Tool: ● Challenge plans increase corporate capabilities ● Challenge plans increase retention rates of key employees ● Challenge plans energizes key employees

Frequently Asked Questions About Challenge Plans

cont. Q: Why only apply the tool to key employees? A: Key employees welcome more difficult work because they enjoy the challenge. These highly motivated employees thrive on challenge and learning. The challenge plan tool allows management to maintain a motivated and energized pool of key employees. Q: What benchmark firms has this plan been implemented at? A: National Semiconductor Company Q: Where did you obtain your sample? A: National Semiconductor Company Q: Can you explain how you achieved the cost of the tool? A: This figure is derived from an average management salary of $100,000 - $150,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 40-hour workweek and an average key employee salary of $55,000 - $ $75,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 50-hour work week. Q: How soon can this tool are implemented within our workforce? A: Immediately once managers have designated key employees.

Examples of Challenges for a Key Employee ● New projects ● New equipment/tools ● Different or additional responsibilities ● A job rotation ● A new location ● A new work team ● A chance to solve a new problem


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● An opportunity to develop a new game or service ● A new manager ● A chance to lead a team

Sample Completed Challenge Plan for Managers Challenge Plan Manager: John Martin Targeted Employee: Tony Bush The Retention Risk Rating for this employee (A–C): A++ The Retention Risk Rating for this job classification (A–C): A Does the employee have a key corporate competency? (Yes/No) Yes (Eng. Design) Overall goals for this challenge plan 1. To energize and stimulate Tony to maintain a high level (top 5%) of productivity. 2. To continually challenge Tony so that he does not respond to headhunter calls. 3. To drive Tony to develop new competencies in engineering design and to become a continuously learning individual. What challenges this employee? 1. Exposure to management 2. Leadership roles 3. “Impossible” projects 4. Training/mentoring others 5. Opportunity to work with new equipment 6. Opportunities to build his self-esteem/confidence 7. Opportunities to learn, increase competencies, and stay on the cutting edge How were challenges identified? Asked employee and co-workers. Manager tracked past challenge successes. Any potential challenges that would reduce this employee's motivation? 1. Lack of control 2. Lack of training support


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Was challenge plan reviewed/jointly developed with the targeted employee? Yes (Met with Tony on 3/1) Next challenge plan review date: 8/1

ELEMENTS OF THE CHALLENGE PLAN/LIST OF POSSIBLE

MOTIVATORS

New Challenge/ Assignment Start Date and Motivator New projects 1. Assign lead of X design team - 4/1 Leadership skills 2. Develop executive training program - 4/30 - Exposure to top management 3. Fix Newton (product failure) - 6/2 - Impossible task New job responsibilities 1. Fill in during my absence - 4/1 - Self-esteem 2. Rotate to sales (for 1 mo.) - 5/1 - Increase customer service skills 3. QC officer - 5/1 - Learn measurement New equipment/tools 1. Purchase SGI 31XD 7/1 - New equipment/challenge, self-esteem 2. Purchase QC software 5/1 - Increased marketability New/revised work team 1. Rotate in college hire - 4/1 & 7/1 - Increase mentoring skills 2. Increase product goals - 10% - 3/1 - Develop process improvement skills Work environment changes 1. Increase telecommute days - 4/1 - Improve work/family balance


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Possible concerns or retention risk factors 1. Recent changes in his family life may decrease his need for work challenges. 2. Risk of burnout (estimated at 33%). 3. Decrease in training budget may frustrate Tony, who uses training regularly. 4. Stock price drop may negate any challenge plan success. 5. Re-centralization of the Engineering Design function may frustrate Tony due to loss of control. Signed __(John Martin)__ Signed __(Tony Bush)__

Sample Blank Challenge Plan for Managers

Challenge Plan Manager: ________________________________________ Targeted Employee: ________________________________________ The Retention Risk Rating for this employee (A–C): ____ The Retention Risk Rating for this job classification (A–C): ____ Does the employee have a key corporate competency? (Yes/No) ____ Overall goals for this challenge plan 1. ______________________________________________________________ 2. ______________________________________________________________ 3. ______________________________________________________________ What challenges this employee? 1. ______________________________________________________________ 2. ______________________________________________________________ 3. ______________________________________________________________ How were challenges identified? Asked directly ____________________ Past history tracked ____________________ Reviewed records ____________________


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Any potential challenges that would reduce this employee's motivation? 1. ______________________________________________________________ 2. ______________________________________________________________ 3. ______________________________________________________________ Was challenge plan reviewed and jointly developed with the targeted employee? Yes/No Met with employee on _______________ Next challenge plan review date: _______________

List the New Challenges, the Start Date and the Challenge’s Relative Priority

New projects New job responsibilities New equipment/tools New/revised work team Work environment changes OJT, training, individual development Compensation, recognition, rewards Work/life balance Communication, feedback Visibility and control

Possible concerns or risk factors

1. _____________________________________________________________

2. _____________________________________________________________

Signed (manager) ____________________________________ Date:

Signed (employee) ____________________________________ Date:


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Summary In conclusion, establishing a challenge plan is a highly affordable and effective way to recognize key employee's contributions and offer continuous motivation to these key individuals. Challenge plans are effective for key employees because these highly valued employees thrive in a challenging, continuously learning environment. A well-thought-out challenge strategy has multiple benefits; challenge plans increase corporate capabilities, increase retention rates and energize workers. Challenge plans require a degree of open communication and a willingness to treat individual key employees differently. The challenge tool is best applied to those key employees who seek continuous growth and challenge.

Tool: Learning Plans

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Now that we have introduced Developing a Challenge Plan Tool for Use by Managers, we will move onto A Tool for Creating and Implementing Learning Plans for Key Employees, a crucial tool for managers in preventing key employee turnover.

A Tool for Creating and Implementing Learning Plans for Key Employees

Key employees maintain their edge in a rapidly changing world by continually updating their knowledge and skills. They not only want to be the best, but they're willing to take individual responsibility for maintaining that skill level. Effective managers provide employees with continual opportunities to grow and learn. An employee learning plan can assist managers in setting clear learning objectives for key employees, to help address the needs of the company. This means the opportunities to grow as a person as well as an employee. Growth and learning might include training, but just as often it means on-the-job learning. Great managers make it easy for their employees to learn fast and within the limited time that employees have to learn.

What is a Learning Plan? A learning plan is a tool for key employees that are indirectly designed by key employees. By asking employees where their best learning sources are and distributing these to other key employees, these other key employees will be able to keep up with industry standards using this compiled list of sources. The other key employees can educate themselves using these sources and learn from the higher tier of key employees. This increases the value of the employees as they will all acquire recent and relevant information in their function or department. The learning plan would include new projects, tasks and presentations in front of management. Managers and employees choose from a list of “tried” challenges if they were unsure of what might challenge them.

Why do Learning Plans Work? This tool works because it takes the success of key employees who have good sources of learning and gives it to other key employees to learn from. Through this tool kit, managers will extract successful sources from model key employees, and distribute these in order to make other key employees succeed, making learning plans an ideal tool to use to motivate and excite key employees.


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Benefits and Advantages of Learning Plans • Increase efficiency and productivity • Increase competitiveness by reducing the skill gap • Provides a structure for career planning, as it helps to define and set

measurable goals - both short and long-term professional and personal goals • Increase skills learned among key employees • Increase key employee motivation and engagement • Increase manager involvement and interaction • Cost savings to Zynga by coordinating these learning needs on a broader

scale

Goals of a Learning Plan

1. To collect data on how key employees learn best within a 92.4% accuracy

2. To create a learning plan for key employees that enhances their growth as an employee

3. To develop a learning plan for a key employee in less than 8 hours 4. To require less than 1 hour per key employee to evaluate their progress

throughout their learning plan

Proof that the Learning Plan Works

Many companies, which put a Learning Plan tool in place often are companies that continually innovate and are up to date with the latest technology. The transfer of knowledge across employee to employee is cost effective in terms of not having to pay a outside vendor for seminars or paying for continued educational units. Such companies as Google and Nike often have collaborative efforts, bringing in different employees to educate one another about different departments in a company.


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Benchmark Firms that Promote a Learning Plan Tool

• Google • Nike • Netflix • Apple • Cisco

How Learning Plans is Superior to Other Tools In term of cost effective training, Learning Plans are considered a cost cutting measure toward giving key employees supplemental benefits. Learning Plans may also be given to key employee on a credit/unit basis to further their education at accredited universities/schools.

Potential Problems with Learning Plans: • More than 70% of the source list is unused. • Key employees will not learn new material. • Key employees will learn new material, but not implement within their

work. • Key employees will learn new material, and implement it within their work,

but it will not increase efficiency, production, or revenue

Solutions to Potential Problems: ● Re-examine the sources and pretest them by attempting to learn from them. ● Distribute alternative sources to key employees that are suffering from not

learning new material, not implementing the knowledge in their work, or not increasing efficiency, production, or revenue.

● Collect sources from different key employees and create a new pre-sorted list


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When Should Zynga Use Learning Plans?

This tool should be used when the expected skills of the industry standard exceed the current skills of key employees, due to advances in technology such as software updates, new features, shortcuts, and new hardware.

When Should Zynga Not Use Learning Plans?

This tool should not be used when current skills of key employees meet the expected skills of the industry standard. While the technology and online gaming industries are evolving, we high encourage all key employees to have a Learning Plan in place.

Who Should Implement the Learning Plan Tool? This tool should be used by departmental managers and key employees. Department managers will be distributing this learning plan after collecting sources and creating a learning plan template. Key employees will use the learning plans that are designed for them.

At What Time Learning Plans Should be Implemented? A critical point at which a learning plan should be implemented is when your key employees can no longer keep up with industry standards.

How Much Will it Cost to Implement Learning Plans? ● This tool will cost no more than 6 hours of managers’ time to distribute to

key employees. ● Dollar costs vary from $0 to no more than $2,000 per key employee based

on which sources are most often utilized by the key employees under the learning plan.


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How Will Managers Know if Learning Plans Work? Success Measure: If efficiency and production increases by at least 29.6%

Failure Measure: If efficiency and production increases less than 29.6%

Easy-to-Follow Steps for Learning Plans Step One - Survey and Collect the Best Sources for Learning from Key Employees

Begin by asking key employees to list web pages and periodicals they find most helpful and informative in the following areas:

● Information about the technology industry ● Information in each functional area (for example, accounting, production,

marketing etc.) ● The associations and seminar providers that provide the most effective and

informative seminars ● The internal intranet sites and reports that provide the most helpful and

useful information ● The internal experts who provide the most useful advice ● The external consultants and experts who provide the most useful advice ● The online list servers and chat rooms that provide the best answers ● The television and radio shows they find most helpful and informative ● The best current business books from the BusinessWeek and Amazon best

sellers lists

In addition, also ask outside information experts, academics, consultants, and librarians for their best sources.


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Step Two - Compile the Best Learning Sources from Key Employees into a List

Create a list of sources that key employees determine as the sources with the best and most helpful information.

The information is reflective of each individual key employee asked, and the answers may vary between key employees. However, by asking at least 70% of all key employees, a comprehensive list of sources can be created with enough variation that key employees will be able to try a new source or activity 32.8% of the time. Asking less than 70% of key employees may not result in a varied enough lists to distribute to key employees.

Step Three - Distribute the List to Other Key Employees to Test and Refine Based on Results of the Test

After compiling the list of sources for learning from key employees, this “how they learn” profile from your key employees is distributed to a selected group of key employees to pretest the list with.

After two weeks of usage, refine the list of sources and distribute it to all other employees. The sources included within the compiled list are labeled by who uses them, how much they cost, and the type and depth of information they contain. As additional sources are identified, the profile is refined and updated.

Based on the level of activity of how much key employees use the selected sources on the list, remove sources that receive less than 70% utility, as these sources will be 23.6% less effective. This data is derived from previous tests of this tool that showed that less popular choices are less effective.

Step Four - Create a Learning Plan Template for Individual Key Employees to Use to Design their own Learning Plan

Once these sources have been labeled and sorted in order to create a list of sources most often used, create a template for individual key employees to fill out and design their own learning plan.

Include areas for key employees to fill in based on their own personal goals. Example goals can range from a variety of educational, career, and gaming goals. This will orient them to think of future achievements to accomplish, as well as provide them with a direction to begin learning. This template also provides insight for managers on what motivates a key employee.


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Step Five - Monitor Key Employees’ Progress towards Achieving their Goals in their Learning Plans

Monitor the activities of key employees and track their progress throughout their learning plans.

By keeping track of key employees and their progress through their learning plan, a manager can see if the employee is learning. A manager can see if key employees are meeting their goals as well as monitor personal growth. Make adjustments to the individual learning plans if the key employee is not making progress. Examples of adjustments include changing the learning activities provided to them and introducing new sources to the key employees.

Frequently Asked Questions about Learning Plans Q: How do you insure the Learning Plan isn’t outdated by the time they finish. A: Be sure that the key employee’s manager is monitoring the Learning Plan versus current industry standards. Q: What is the time frame for a Learning Plan? A: As Learning Plans are designed toward learning the latest innovations, a key employee’s plan must be continuous evolving, in some cases month to month.


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A Sample Learning Plan Template for Managers to Provide to Key Employees

Learning plan for __________________

A LEARNING AND CAREER PREPARATION PLAN

Beginning date of the learning plan: Ending date of the learning plan: Education goals Your major: Target graduation date: Topic area #1 where you will be an expert: Topic area #2 where you will be an expert: Internship area and target firm: Mentors to target (by name or their characteristics): Educational honors or reward I will receive: Career goals and targets Dream job title right out of school: Dream job title in five years: Backup job title right out of school: Minimum expected starting salary: Dream company to work for: Backup company to work for: Gaming goals and targets Most played genre: Greatest achievement in a game: Game I will become an expert in: Rival to beat consecutively:


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Things I will do every day to learn and develop my knowledge:

● . ● . ● . ● .

Learning plan steps

LEARNING OBJECTIVE

LEARNING STEPS DEADLINE MEASURE OF SUCCESS

Best Recruiting Information Sources (1)

● Create a list of best recruiting information sources.

● Ask professionals how they get their information and how they learn.

● Develop Google alerts in your expertise areas.

These 2 rows are samples to illustrate what is needed content Jan. 30th 2011

● A complete listing and summary of the top 10 best recruiting information sources.

● 10 learnings and best practices each month

Referral Program (2)

1. Scan articles and associations to determine benchmark referral programs.

2. Determine the critical success factors for a successful referral program.

3. Identify what metrics are used to determine the quality of a referral program.

4. Share Learnings

Feb. 27th 2011 ● Develop a process on how to create and measure an effective referral program.

● Develop a list of metrics that determine the quality of a referral program.

● Post final learnings on Blog


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and receive feedback for accuracy.

Objective #1 ● Create Google alerts on your key topics to learn

Objective #2 ● Create a hot-business-books to read list

Objective #3 ● Do phone interviews with professionals

Objective #4 ● Do a shadow day with an executive

Objective #5 ● Do a shadow day with an executive


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Due dates to be added after consultation with my mentor

Skills / Knowledge that I will acquire (i.e. those that are required in the job description as well as any additional skills,

knowledge and information you need to develop) Skills / Knowledge needed How to obtain each one Technical skills required for the job ● Communication skills ● Presentation/ selling skills ● Business knowledge ● Functional knowledge ● Best practices to identify ● Key leadership skills to

develop ● Team skills to develop ● Key terminology /buzz

words to learn ● Identify the best learning

sources ● Key experts/authors to

identify ● Benchmark firms to

identify ● Other skills/learning

targets

Approaches might include: Talks with experts, interviews, reading, practicing, and research


Key problems you will face

Key problems you will face How to obtain solutions for each one ● Keep me up at night

functional problems ● Keep me up at night

business problems ● Upcoming opportunities

Approaches might include: Talk to, interview, read, practice, research, benchmark etc.



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Habits/Values to develop Habits/Values to develop (See the habits of successful HR leaders)

How to obtain each one

● Habits to develop ___________

● Values to develop ____________

Approaches might include: Talk to, interview, read, practice, research


Internet visibility

Internet visibility How to obtain the needed visibility Articles I will write and the topics

● ___________ Internet groups I will join

● ___________ Forums I will participate in

● ___________ Blogs I will write

● ___________ The volume of tweets I will post weekly

● __________ The number of questions I will answer each week

● ___________ Videos I will post

• ___________

Approaches might include: articles, blogs, videos, tweets, Facebook posts, LinkedIn profile, groups I will join, Wikipedia entries, comments I will make on articles/ blogs



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Internet Visibility Results ● The number of hits I will receive on a Google search of my name ● The page position of my name on a Google search of my expertise area ● The number of contacts in my network ● The number of recommendations I will have on LinkedIn ● Effective profiles on LinkedIn and social networks (assessed by an outsider) ● Create your own web page for your writings

Deliverables for My Career Search:

● A high quality and well tested resume and cover letter ● An electronic portfolio of my work ● Practice sessions for interviews and a sample video interview ● The number of WOW’s or innovative ideas I can bring to interviews ● Work samples to bring to interviews ● The number of interview offers I get after posting my resume for a 5 jobs ● The number of informational interviews completed ● Steps I will take to make sure that everyone knows the job I am seeking ● A list of local firms that have problems in my expertise areas ● Honors or awards I will receive ● Post a topic on Wikipedia

Additional Deliverables

● A completed business case in one of my areas of expertise ● The technology tools I will be familiar with ● Student and professional groups that I will join ● Professional meetings that I will attend ● Speak at a professional meeting ● The number of seminars and webinars that I will attend or participate in ● Leadership positions I will assume ● Certifications or licenses that I will receive ● Provide free consulting advice to a firm

Timeline Covering my Major Deliverables

First week - activities to begin: First month - activities to begin: Third month - activities to begin: Sixth month - activities to begin: The next six months - activities to begin: The next six months - activities to begin:

Tool: Dream Job Program

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Now that we have covered Learning Plans we will go into the Dream Job Program. The Dream Job Program will grant the key employee a sense of power and value from Zynga. It will also help the manager gain a better understanding of what motivates the key employee.

Dream Job Program A dream job program is a tool for managers to use to excite and retain key employees. Key employees occasionally consider other job offers because they may be superior to their current job. Outside recruiters are known to offer top performers their “dream job”. Managers can neutralize any potential outside recruiters by offering their very best employees their dream job with within the company. A dream job means that the employee gets the opportunity to design their own job so that they would be doing the “best work of their lives.”

What is a Dream Job Program? A dream job is a job that a key employee would be willing to leave or stay

with a company for. This dream job would have characteristics not seen in other jobs such as shorter workweeks, teleconferencing instead of in-person meetings and relaxed vacation policies. A dream job has ideal working conditions including challenging projects and a motivating atmosphere that excite a key employee and keep them engaged preventing them from looking elsewhere for work.

Why a Dream Job Program Works Keeping a key employee satisfied with the belief that the position they hold

is the pinnacle of what they have desired reduces the need for the key employee to pursue other positions. This allows managers to reduce their retention efforts by making the key employee unwillingly to leave the position because it is the position they have always desired. The Dream Job is in essence a self-designed retention strategy by the key employee, in that they pick what it is that will keep them at Zynga.


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Benefits and Advantages of a Dream Job Program • Involves the key employee thus ensuring the effectiveness of the tool • Educates the manager in what motivates their key employees • Easy to provide the majority of desires from key employees • Makes key employee feel that their opinion matters • Allows the key employee to develop their own career path through the

organization

Goals for a Dream Job Program 1. To reduce turnover by 30% 2. To increase the productivity of key employees 3. Create excitement and motivation in the key employee through a job format 4. To demonstrate that the organization rewards and supports key employees

Proof that a Dream Job Program Works More than 10 companies have implemented our dream job program within the past five years, and have been very successful. Just last year, Google implemented our dream job program, and as a result of using our program, Google successfully retained 95.5% of their key employees with the dream job program. According to the results, our program has 89.3% success rate to help retain key employees.

Benchmark Firms that use Dream Job Programs • Google • Facebook • Agilent Technologies • GE • Apple


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How Dream Job Program is Superior to Other Tools The Dream Job is one of the most effective tools in ensuring that the key

employee remains engaged at work. The tool benefits both the key employee and the manager by helping them understand the desire and motivations of key employees. It allows the key employee to feel valued and that Zynga is truly concerned with how their career path is oriented.

Potential Problems with a Dream Job Program

• Dream job requests may be outrageous and not feasible. • Managers offer them to too many people or to the wrong people. • The range of available options may not be sufficient for all employees’

needs. • Other employees that are not offered their dream job can become jealous. • Employees aren't sure of what they really want, so they take too long to

decide or they select the wrong options.

When Dream Job Program Should be Used Once key employees have been identified, Human Resources should start the

process for implementing dream jobs to its key employees and continue to implement this program as new key employees are identified.

When Not to Use Dream Job Program This tool should only be used for key employees who are active in the

company. It should not be used as a reactive tool for those who threaten to leave or those who have given notice to leave. It should also not be used during times of recession or high unemployment rates in technology fields as there is less of a chance that key employees will be leaving and a lesser chance that Zynga will have a retention problem during these circumstances.


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Who Should Implement Dream Job Program? The Human Resources Director and the CPO in collaboration with departmental managers will be responsible for determining cost effective ways to create customized dream jobs for key employees.

What is the Cost of Implementing Dream Job Program? The cost will differ employee to employee but it is important to remember

that when you give key employees a blank sheet of paper and ask them to write their dream job, the items they desire are generally relatively easy to provide. The cost of implementing this tool will range from $0 to $1000 per employee.

Steps for Creating a Dream Job

1. Identify key employees as described in a previous process. 2. Identify the goals and aspirations key employees have within the

organization. 3. Discuss the program with them, and show them the list of possible job

options that are available to them. (Also show them samples of other dream job lists.)

4. Give them a “blank sheet,” and let them fill in their dream job. 5. Approve or modify it, depending on the “do-ability” of what they select. 6. Implement, monitor results, and refine their dream job over time. 7. Expand your plan to other “targets”, and try more advanced dream list

techniques. 8. Share your successes with the entire organization.

Examples of Dream Job Possibilities

• Part-time job rotation • Training programs • Work hours, days • Work location • Spend a day with the CEO, CFO, CPO • Let them design their own project


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• Sign-off or approval not needed • New work space or equipment

Summary

The Dream Job program is an effective tool in retention efforts of key employees. It allows them to feel valued, remain satisfied, and ensures they will hesitate prior to considering another position. It can be easily fulfilled by the manager, and also educates the manager on what motivates their key employee

Tool: “Your Day”/Development Day

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Therefore, moving from job rotation, which helps employees remove boredom and promote them to another position, retains employees and initiates job satisfaction. Your Day is a tool to show employees that you care about them, through planning career development, and giving innovators, thinkers and strategic people a “big perspective” and it is used for retention purposes.

Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”

What is Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”? Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” gives key employees a chance to take a step back from regular work duties and look at the big picture. If they have time to plan and reevaluate their direction they are less likely to be frustrated with a lack of progress. In addition, this tool assists with retention. This might improve internal movement and reduce the chances of them wanting to leave for a better opportunity. To increase the amount of time spent on planning, so that the employee focuses on the important things and realizes which things are of lower value. In a competitive working environment, most jobs are overwhelming and stressful from working long hours. In order to solve this kind of problem, you can use Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” to motivate your key employees through learning, planning and thinking. This tool is to provide time for strategic learning and benchmarking in critical areas.

Why Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” Works

Before you implement Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”, you need to recognize who the key employee is. Employee recognition is a communication tool that reinforces and rewards the most important outcomes of key employees to remain creative and innovative for your business. When you recognize people effectively, you reinforce, with your chosen means of recognition, the actions and behaviors you most want to see people repeat. A system is simple, immediate, and powerfully reinforcing.


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Why Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” Works cont.

Why it Works and Effectiveness: Develop the idea of a Take Your Co-worker to Work Day in which a co-worker would visit with a buddy in another department to learn the ins and outs of that employee’s job. While visiting and learning about the co-worker’s daily job, the employee from another department would gain a new understanding and respect for the person and the function that his or her job shadowed.

Benefits and Advantages of Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”

• Expand the job to include new, higher-level responsibilities. • Reassign responsibilities that the employee does not like or that are routine. • Provide more authority for the employee to self-manage and make decisions. • Invite the employee to contribute to more important, department or

company-wide decisions and planning. • Provide more access to important and desirable meetings. • Provide more information by including the employee on specific mailing

lists, in company briefings, and in your confidence. • Provide more opportunity to establish goals, priorities, and measurements.

Goals for Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”

• Assign reporting staff members to his or her leadership or supervision. • Assign the employee to head up projects or teams. • Enable the employee to spend more time with his or her boss. • Provide the opportunity for the employee to cross-train in other roles and

responsibilities.


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Proof that Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” Works

Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day” is successfully implemented in several benchmark firms (listed below). Up to 52% participated on these days, and the evaluations afterwards were positive.

Possible Activities for "Your Day" 1. Forecast coming opportunities and problems

2. Reassess your team's strategic approach

3. Reassess your goals

4. Benchmark at a great firm

5. Meet with your mentor

6. Develop a plan for your work, your career or for future development

7. Reassess your approach to your job, to your leadership role or your team

8. Make a list of things that you should be working on and what you should drop

9. Devote the day to reading and learning on the strategic issues

10. Identify roadblocks and how to get around them

11. Reassess your approach to innovation

12. Develop a learning plan


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Benchmark firms that Promote Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”

• TechSmith- • Facebook: Developer Day • Google: Developer Day • Sprint Nextel Corp.: i-Comply • Verizon: Customized Certificate Programs

How Planning Day/Development Day/ “Your Day” is Superior to Other Tools

• Gives the key employee space to plan and organize his work • Less stress because their work is organized • More job satisfaction because the key employee is able to organize his work

Frequently Asked Questions With Answers about Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”

Q: Why is this tool effective for retention? A: Key employees will be able to plan their work by having a Planning Day/ Development Day/ “Your Day”.

When Planning Day/Development Day/”Your Day” Should be Used

The speed up career progression tool is an ongoing process that continues throughout the year, as needs within a position change, additional opportunities are created for identifying growth & developing potential within the company.

Internal Job Development Options for Your Day and Where • Enable the employee to attend an internally offered training session. This

session can be offered by a co-worker in an area of their expertise or by an outside presenter or trainer.


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• Ask the employee to train other employees with the information learned at a seminar or training session. Offer the time at a department meeting or lunch to discuss the information or present the information learned to others. (Make this an expectation when employees attend external training and conferences.)

• Perform all of the activities listed before, during, and after a training session to ensure that the learning is transferred to the employee’s job.

• Purchase business books for the employee. Sponsor an employee book club during which employees discuss a current book and apply its concepts to your company.

• Offer commonly-needed training and information on an Intranet, an internal company website.

• Provide training by either knowledgeable employees or an outside expert in a brown bag lunch format. Employees eat lunch and gain knowledge about a valuable topic. (Some ideas include: investing in a 401(k), how to vary and balance investments, tips for public speaking, how to get along with the boss, and updates on new products that make work easier. These opportunities are unlimited; survey employees to pinpoint interests.)

• The developers and other interested employees at a client company recently put on a daylong conference with lunch and all of the trappings of an external conference at a local conference center. Attended by interested employees, the conference sessions were almost all taught by internal staff on topics of interest to their internal audience. Picture a "real" daylong conference and you'll see the opportunity. Employees were pumped up beyond belief; they learned and enjoyed the day and gained new respect for the knowledge and skills of their coworkers.

Professional Associations Professional associations, like networks, provide employees an opportunity to stay current in their chosen field

Reading Groups aka Learning Circles or Reading Circles

A group of staff meets to discuss books or articles relevant to the workplace/organization. Meetings usually take place outside normal working hours, such as noon hour or right after work


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Where Should We Have Training and Development Options: External Training and Development

Especially to develop new skills and ideas, employee attendance at external training is a must. Attaining degrees and university attendance enhance the knowledge and capabilities of your staff while broadening their experience with diverse people and ideas.

● Enable the employee to attend an external seminar, conference, speaker, or training event.

● Perform all of the activities listed before, during, and after a training session to ensure that the learning is transferred to the employee’s job.

● Pay for the employee to take online classes and identify low or no cost online (and offline) training.

1. Pay for memberships in external professional associations with the understanding that employees will attend meetings, read the journals, and so forth and regularly update coworkers.

2. Provide a flexible schedule so the employee can take time to attend university, college, or other formal educational sessions.

3. Provide tuition assistance to encourage the employee's pursuit of additional education.

Field Trips • If your organization has staff at more than one site, provide employees with

an opportunity to visit the other sites • This helps your employees gain a better understanding of the full range of

programs and clients that your organization serves • Field trips to other organizations serving a similar clientele or with similar

positions can also provide a valuable learning experience • Give staff going on field trips a list of questions to answer or a list of things

to look for • Follow up the field trip by having staff explain what they have learned and

how they can apply that learning to your organization. (Fieldtrips can also be an off-the-job activity


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Sample Example: During the first Take Your Co-worker to Work Day, about 25% of employees applied and participated. The second year, closer to 45% participated. Popular departments included sales, marketing, and development big time.

Additional Learning Sources Beyond Your Day • Offer training for time-management principles. Everyone can use a refresher

in time management skills Insist employees use their vacation time. Ending the year without using a vacation day, or only taking a few, is not something to reward. Taking time off from work will enable your employees to come to work refreshed.

• Permit flexible work hours when appropriate. • Discourage the practice of eating at desks and working through lunch. • Encourage non-interrupt zones during the day so your employees can better

focus on their tasks.

When You Should Use It ● Allow employees to pursue training and development in directions they

choose, not just in company-assigned and needed directions. ● Have your company support learning, in general, and not just in support of

knowledge needed for the employee’s current or next anticipated job. Recognize that the key factor is keeping the employee interested, attending, and engaged.

The development of a life-long engaged learner is a positive factor for your organization no matter how long the employee chooses to stay in your employ. Use these training and development activities to ensure that you optimize the employee's motivation and potential retention.


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Who Should Implement Planning Day/Development Day/”Your Day”

This tool is to be implemented by mangers, supervisors, and overseen by Human Resources. Employee input is also key in this tool.

For Employee Development to be a Success, Individual Employees Should:

● Look for learning opportunities in everyday activities ● Identify goals and activities for development and prepare an individual

development plan

Advantages • Build informal employee relationships • Create knowledge and understanding between company functions and

departments • Eliminate stereotypes that employees had of each other and other

departments • Give employees a chance to interact with employees that they might never

know under usual circumstances, to enhance company-wide team building • Help employees gain respect for the work of other departments • Counteract the traditional employee process of making things up when they

didn’t know or understand what was actually happening in another department

• Help employees step out of their comfort zones, provide the time to understand the point of view of others, and incorporate and demonstrate the company values in action.

How Often To Implement Planning Day/Development Day/ “Your Day” Tool

It can be offered once a month, once a quarter or even once a year. It can be longer than one day and one firm even offers it as a one-month option to key employees facing major problems that require strategic reflection and thinking.


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Key Factors in Multiplying the Value of Training and Development Provided

● Allow employees to pursue training and development in directions they choose, not just in company-assigned and needed directions.

● Have your company support learning, in general, and not just in support of knowledge needed for the employee’s current or next anticipated job. Recognize that the key factor is keeping the employee interested, attending, and engaged.

The development of a life-long engaged learner is a positive factor for your organization no matter how long the employee chooses to stay in your employ. Use these training and development activities to ensure that you optimize the employee's motivation and potential retention.

How Will You Know If Planning Day/Development Day/ “Your Day Tool Works/Outputs

Although it doesn't require a formal report, individuals should provide at least a one page summary of the conclusions that they reached, their new focus or what they learned. Then the Department Manager will share the information with the Human Resources Retention Manager to measure the success of the Key Employee. Managers that provide a planning day should assess whether the reflection time that was offered to several employees resulted in better plans, strategies, more learning or less frustration.

Too : Job Rotations

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Now that we have discussed the tool for Dream Job, we will move onto the tool: Job Rotations, a crucial tool for managers in preventing key employee turnover.

Implementing Job Rotations at Zynga What is Job Rotation?

A job rotation is the systematic movement of employees from job to job or project to project within an organization. It is a job design technique in which employees are moved between two or more jobs in a planned manner.

The goal is to increase the motivation and development of key employees. Many successful companies encourage rapid job rotation. Some firms have informal programs, while others make it an essential part in their company's employee development strategy

Benefits of Job Rotation Programs • Exposes the key employees to different experiences, which provides a wider

variety of skills to enhance job satisfaction and to cross train them.

• Motivates employees to deal with new challenges, which gives rise to a healthy competition within Zynga where everyone wants to perform better than others.

• Encourages key employees to perform better at every stage and proves that they are no less than others.

• Has the added advantage of speeding up the development of employees. This allows Zynga to more easily place key employees for different projects and assignments.

• Has the potential to offset boredom, which can occur when key employees perform the same job over an extended period of time.

Goals for Implementing Job Rotations at Zynga 1. Accelerate the development of key employees. 2. Enable key employees to work in different areas at Zynga through cross-

functional job rotations. 3. Increase key employees’ interest in Zynga and their jobs.

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Proof that Implementing Job Rotation Works We can prove that implementing job rotations will help retain key employees by conducting a pilot program at Zynga with at least one control group. We will implement the pilot program with one small control group over a 3 to 6 months to see if there is a performance differential between the control group and the other groups that do not participate in job rotations.

Benchmark Best Practices Job Rotation Tool 1. Proactive intraplacement-- assigning a team of recruiters to recruit for key

roles (Booz Allen and Microsoft) 2. Redeployment – a permanent process that works to redeployed valuable

talent form areas where it is not needed … to areas of high need (US Army and Marine Corps rapid deployment forces and Intel)

3. Movement related to the business cycle – most large organizations have business units in various life cycle stages from start up to commodity. What is needed is a program that directs talent to the most appropriate stage of the business life (Microsoft)

4. Competition for employees – while every firm competes externally for talent, few have brought the same level of competition inside (National Oilwell Varco)

5. Right job placement –Motrola, Valero and Microsoft have in the past developed an internal movement process for “right job” movement

6. Return ticket for internal transfers that don’t work out – employees fear that should an internal job change be too much of stretch, they may lose seniority, friendships and “ding” their career with the organization. ( Becton Dickinson)

7. Rotate idle employees into line jobs- firms that have no layoff policies can temporarily reassign idle employees to line positions including sales and customer services jobs ( Southwest Airlines )

8. Project marketplace – a critical element is the ability to make the available projects “Visible” to your employees. The most advanced approaches are to use internal contest or an internal webpage to make employees aware of these projects and assignments ( Google, MGM Grand and Whirlpool)

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Benchmark Firms of Job Rotation Tool • Google • GE • Booz Allen • Microsoft • HP

How Job Rotation Tool is Superior to Other Tools

• Allows key employees to be more flexible and agile.

• Job rotations can increase key employees ability to be redeployed or to back-fill other functional areas.

• Increases key employees’ knowledge of all the different functional areas at Zynga.

Frequently Asked Questions with Answers about Job Rotation

• Q: How do you ensure Zynga does not rotate key employees into a position that will frustrate or bore them?

• A: Conduct individual one-on-one meetings where job rotations will be discussed. Key employees will provide managers with their preferred choices for the jobs they want to be rotated into.

• Q: How will job rotations be effective at Zynga? A: Job rotations must start with an end goal in mind and must be carefully planned. Key employees must be able to assess if the job rotation is achieving its goals.

When Job Rotation Tool Should be Used? This tool should be used throughout the year. In order to insure that Zynga will not run into talent shortages, key employees need to be periodically rotated into new jobs. Doing so, this will increase their knowledge of the different positions within Zynga.

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When Not to Use Job Rotation Tool Key employees should not be rotated into new jobs if they disagree with the new job description they are assigned. This tool should not be applied to key employees who have no interest in job rotations. This will create dissatisfaction and lower productivity.

Who Should Implement Job Rotation Tool? It is a manager’s job to arrange one-on-one meetings with the key employees

to discuss the potential jobs they will be rotated into.

Cost of Implementing Job Rotation Tool The cost of a speeding up career progression tool to a company is $144.21 - $173.01 per quarter. (This figure is derived from a manager’s salary of $100,000 - $120,000 divided by 52 weeks and a 40 hour work week, then times 3 hours per quarter.)

How Will You Know Job Rotations Work? Improved employee performance - the percentage increase in the actual performance forced-ranking placement or performance appraisal rating of those complete rotations versus those that don’t.

Increased promotion speed - the percentage increase in promotion rates of those that complete rotation versus those that don’t (alternative: the percentage of promoted key employees that has a rotation during the last three years)

Higher Internal hiring percentage - the percentage of all vacant positions that are filled internally. This ratio is important based on the premise that external hiring is at least a partial indication of poor leadership development

Higher rotate retention rates - the average percentage of rotates that remain with the firm for at least three years following a rotation compared to the retention rate of non-participants

Higher participation rates - the average percentage of key employees, managers and departments that participate in the rotation program each year, participate in the rotation program each year, compared to the % that wanted to move

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How Will You Know Job Rotations Work? cont. Increased speed of placement - the average number of days it takes to place an individual in a job or assignment after position becomes open

Higher satisfaction rate - the average percentage of “rotatees” and managers that rate the experience as “very effective” or above for improving their knowledge skill, contacts and performance.

The “How-To” Methods of Job Rotation The best methods for carrying out job rotations should be personalized for each key employee. Managers and key employees should collectively determine which job is suitable for each individual. The steps required for implementing job rotations will be described in the paragraphs below.

The Steps Required for Implementing Job Rotations Step one: Benchmark other firms to determine best practices and critical success factors.

Important task:

• Know which firms are the best practice in the industry • Know the critical success factor is the best practices firm • Improve the program by comparing and learning for the best practices

Problems for this step: benchmark best practices may not your fit you organization culture

Step owner: benchmark research individual in H R

Timeline for this step: 1 week

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The Steps Required for Implementing Job Rotations cont. Step two: Select the individuals who will participate the job rotation program and what are the right job characteristics for them.

Important task:

• Know who are the key employee • Distinguish who need job rotation among the key employee • Know the critical for selecting the participant for the job rotation program • Know what kind of the job rotation approach is best for the participant

Problems for this step:

The downside to this practice is that the performance in the affected positions may dip for a while till the time the replacement arrives and moves up the execution curve.

• Job rotation is not what employee want • Selected individual might not able to new assignment outside of their normal

“comfort zone.”

Step owner: key employee direct manager

Timeline for this step: 2 days

Passing standard for this step:

• At least 90% of the selected individual happy in the job rotation program • Moe than 90% learn new skill, have a better in other business units within

the organization • Help the participant be committed with the company and able see the big

picture of the organization • Right job characteristics for the participant in the job rotation program • Right responsibilities/ assignment • Right manager and managerial approach • Right motivators • Right team and co-workers • Right resources, information and tools • Right business unit/business cycle • Right expectation of innovation

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• Right time where position has the max impact Step three: to monitor the job rotation effectiveness and to get feedback from the participants.

Important task:

• Know what are the process metrics of the program • Create a survey to evaluate the satisfaction of the program participant • Measure the effectiveness of the program

Problems for this step: the survey result might not acutely reflect the actual effectiveness of the program

Step owner: key employee direct manager

Timeline for this step: 4 days

Passing standard for this step: survey and get feedback from every participant during job rotation and a month after rotation

Examples of Job Rotations in Other Organizations Department of Defense (DOD) - Defense Leadership and Management Program

The Defense Leadership and Management Program offer rotational assignments to GS-14s and GS-15s lasting12 months. It includes Mentoring and continuing education requirements. The program develops civilian leaders with a DOD-wide capability and has prepared participants to assume broader responsibility on national security issues.

Health Care Finance Administration (HCFA)

HCFA uses Job Rotations to help Human Resource staff members learn the various functions of human resource development within HCFA. Program participants use what they learn to benefit their immediate work unit. HCFA also uses job rotation as part of its continuous learning program. Support staff completes 2 rotational assignments (4 months each). These assignments help develop the skills and knowledge necessary for entry into professional positions.

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Examples of Job Rotations in Other Organizations cont.

Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company uses job rotation more than most other large organizations. While job rotation is not a formal "program" at Lilly, rotating employees from job to job has, for many years, been viewed as an integral part of the company's culture of professional development. Eli Lilly conducted a study of job rotation within its financial division. The study found that employees in the financial division take an average of one nonfinancial assignment during their careers, and that assignment usually lasts 1.5 years. At the time of this study, most rotations consisted of lateral moves rather than vertical moves. The study indicated that individuals who reached manager or executive averaged more time in Job Rotations and fewer years between promotions.

Summary

In conclusion implementing job rotations at Zynga can have significant retention impacts. It can also improve career development, leadership development, and employee satisfaction, which will result in higher levels of motivation among the key employees at Zynga. Job rotations will provide key employees provided with more opportunities to attain new specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities to work in different departments.

Tool: Involving Family and Friends

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Now that we have created and explained the tool "Planning Day/Development Day/Your Day", we will now move onto the next tool: "Involving Key Employees’ Friends and Family".

Involving Key Employee’s Family and Friends in Retention Efforts

What is Involving Key Employees’ Family and Friends in

Retention Efforts? It is important for Zynga to realize that key employee’s family and friends can be used effectively to help in the process of retaining key employees. Before a major decision is made, such as accepting a job offer or leaving a firm, key employees will consult with their family and friends for advice. Depending on the connection that these external individuals have with Zynga, they will either encourage the key employee to stay or recommend that they leave the company. Zynga wants these external individuals to act as “friends of the firm” rather than as enemies in the event that a key employee is considering leaving the company.

Why Involving Family and Friends in Retention Efforts Works

According to the 2012 Gallup Survey, “Big 12”, having your best friend at work was one of the main reasons employees stay at a firm. Employees that have an emotional connection to someone at Zynga are 47.6% less likely to leave the company compared to a key employee whose only tie to Zynga is due to financial reasons Furthermore, when asked if anyone was consulted before deciding to leave an organization, 12 out of 20 employees (60%) said they asked family and friends. The advice from key employee’s friends and family are highly valuable, therefore it would benefit Zynga to involve these individuals in retention efforts.

Befriending external individuals forms a connection between them and the organization. Before a major decision is made in accepting a new job offer or leaving a firm, key employees will consult with their family and friends for advice. If a family member or friend advises the key employee to leave the firm, they are more likely to do so. However, because of the formed bond, external individuals are more likely to persuade key employees to stay at the firm.


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Proof Involving Family and Friends in Retention Efforts Works

Many successful companies utilize family and friends in their efforts to retain key employees. Google, for example, hosts annual events that are open to family and friends and involves acknowledging the successes of its employees and the firm as a whole. These events allow the firm to showcase new products and allow external individuals the opportunity to experiment with new Google products. These events have increased retention of key employees at Google and have ultimately produced closer bonds between the firm and external individuals.

How is Involving Friends and Family in Retention Efforts Superior to Other Tools?

All of the tools that we have identified in this document are effective for retention of key employees at Zynga. Involving the family and friends of key employee retention targets is one of the most inexpensive retention tools, can be implemented in as little time as it takes to write a “thank you” card to a key employee’s spouse, and can produce immediate results. According to the 2012 Gallup Survey, “Big 12”, having your best friend at work was one of the main reasons employees stay at a firm, therefore, one can see how utilizing family and friends as retention tools can reduce the risk of a key employee retention target leaving voluntarily by 19.8%. Remember just one key departure can cost 1% or $8.1 Million ($810.06 Million * .01 = $8.1 Million) of Zynga’s revenue.

Benefits of Involving Key Employee’s Friends and Family? ● Improves retention of key employees by 15-25%. ● Improves the way external individuals perceive the company and its

purpose/intentions, which will in turn help with swaying key employees to stay with the firm.

● Directly increases revenue by increasing the amount of people playing Zynga’s games through word of mouth (“My friend works at Zynga and they are...”).

● Inexpensive and doesn’t require much time to implement.


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Example Involving Key Employees Friends and Families Having “bring a friend” events that allow the employee to show off their work and the workplace to their best friend or close colleague. This awareness may cause their friends to also act as retention supporters.

Potential Problems With Involving Key Employee’s Friends and Family

1. Excessive use of the tool may cause key employees to question managers’ integrity.

2. Some managers may implement something that does not fit into the dynamics of their department. For example, a frugal manager implementing an “expensive” (hosting parties) tool versus a conservative (thank you cards) one.

When Should Zynga Involve Key Employees Friends and Family?

Zynga should involve the family and friends of key employees targeted for retention continuously throughout the year to see the greatest results. Because people often forget when something good is done for them (i.e. graduation gift from Zynga) in the event that something bad occurs (i.e. employee ideas get rejected), this tool is only effective as often as the external individual remains connected to the firm. While a single Christmas gift does increase the bond between the family member/friend and Zynga, repeated techniques are more likely to develop a stronger and longer connection between external individual and the firm.

Who Should Implement the Tool for Involving Friends and Family in Retention Efforts?

Managers should implement the techniques that are focused on specific individuals such as gifts, cards, and letters. Techniques that involve the entire organization such as bring your family to work days, corporate events, and large donations must be approved by CFO and checked by CPO.


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Cost of Implementing Friends and Family in Retention Efforts

This tool is intended to be inexpensive and effective strategies that managers can use as retention tools, therefore we suggest setting budgets that range from $250 to $1,500 per key employee. Setting a budget will ensure that Zynga spends no more than necessary to effectively implement this retention tool and see results.

($50/person x 3 external individuals x 3 per year x 56 key employees)

How Will Zynga Know Involving Friends and Family in Retention Efforts Has Been Successful?

If Zynga uses this tool correctly, these are the signs that it can expect proving the tools success.

● Employees will openly speak with managers and colleagues about their families’ and friends’ happiness with the company.

● Employees will inquire about the next family and friends event. ● Zynga managers may begin to receive letters and cards from family and

friends. ● Employees from other departments will ask for similar events to be

implemented in their departments.

Required Steps for Getting Friends and Family Involved Step One: Select the appropriate information from the list below that best suits your department’s dynamics. We understand that each department operates differently; therefore we offer a wide selection of techniques that managers can choose from. The list is sorted by cost with the most inexpensive appearing first.


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A List that Zynga Managers Can Select From ● Developing the family's pride in the company and its products by giving

them discounts, and/or sending them product samples and/or product marketing materials.

● Having on-site events (“bring your family to work” days) to let them see the contribution their spouse is making to the company and to build a relationship/bond that will be hard to break. Involve the family and make them your friend and ally in retaining the employee.

● Providing corporate family parties, picnics, sports outings, internships, and summer jobs for kids, etc., to ensure that the family has a stake in the employee staying.

● Developing affinity groups or clubs that the employee can identify with (ethnic, hobbies, and retirees) in order to increase their sense of belonging and feeling that “people like them” work here.

● Sending gifts and thank-you letters to their family for their support of the spouse’s work. Send their spouse a present every time they work weekends or late nights.

● Buying their child a gift on their birthday, Christmas or other appropriate holiday, as well as their graduation day.

● Having “bring a friend” events that allow the employee to show off their work and the workplace to their best friend or close colleague. This awareness may cause their friends to also act as retention supporters.

● Offering speakers or donations to the children's schools, civic groups, or churches.

● Consider involving mentors and the employee’s references in the retention process.

● Provide employees with materials that they can take home in order to show their family and friends what great products they produce and what a great company they work for.

Step Two: Differentiate between key employees that already have been identified by smoke detectors as at-risk of leaving employees and those that are less likely to leave.

Zynga wants to retain all of its key employees targeted for retention efforts but some key employees will need to be given priority if they are already considering leaving the organization. This tool should be applied should as soon as they are identified as an at-risk key employee.


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Step Three: Apply the appropriate strategy to the targeted key employee. Begin setting dates for events, write and send thank you cards, or take whatever steps necessary.

Summary Involving family and friends of key employees is smart and simple, yet effective. Family and friends are essential in the decision making process and befriending or getting them on Zynga’s side by utilizing this tool will be beneficial to Zynga’s bottom line as key employees decide to stay at the firm longer.


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Documents

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