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HALOGEN SOFTWARE SHOWCASES TWO INDUSTRY FIRSTS THAT HELP ORGANIZATIONS BUILD EXCEPTIONAL WORKFORCES

Halogen Software Inc. has launched its new 1:1 Exchange meeting module and its previously announced Halogen Myers-Briggs module at the company's eighth annual customer conference today. These two new modules introduce innovative ways for organizations to improve communication, collaboration and coaching among their workforces.

Build a strong coaching culture through effective one-on-one meetings with Halogen's new 1:1 Exchange module

The 1:1 Exchange meeting module offers an industry first by enabling organizations to incorporate information from various talent management processes into one-on-one sessions, and use that data to foster a culture of high performance.

Employee engagement surveys conducted in many organizations indicate that the most important meeting for managers and employees are the one-on-one dialogues. However, in many organizations today, these meetings are either poorly done or are not done at all. The 1:1 Exchange module addresses this challenge by facilitating meaningful and impactful performance discussions between managers and employees.

It's the only one-on-one meeting tool available that fully integrates with a talent management suite to make it easy for managers and employees to review and update goals and development plans, and share feedback and recognition all in one place. Discussion notes are conveniently stored and available on-demand for managers and employees to reference in future one-on-one meetings, and when completing employee performance reviews.

Research shows that creating a culture that encourages the best from employees and motivates them to give their best has a positive impact on employee engagement.

"The 1:1 Exchange meeting module can help foster a culture of continuous performance and feedback," said Dawn MacKay, vice-president of product management at Halogen. "It gives employees a regular opportunity to ask questions, clarify expectations, receive feedback on their performance, and provide feedback to their manager, all of which can boost engagement, productivity and business results."

The 1:1 Exchange module also provides human resources administrators and senior leaders unmatched insights into how frequently managers are meeting with their direct reports. More importantly, the organization is able to identify which managers are not having one-on-one meetings, and the potential impact on engagement, performance and turnover.

"What's great about 1:1 Exchange is that it automatically generates an agenda based on employee activity within the Halogen suite to help encourage dialogue between managers and their direct reports," said Shelley Johnson, vice-president of human resources, SGT Inc. "This feature alone makes it an effective coaching tool because managers and employees don't have to depend on memory or spend valuable time each week deciding on priorities, and choosing which topics to discuss; it's all laid out for them."

Halogen's 1:1 Exchange module also offers:

• Configurable open-ended questions or conversation starters to help managers lead coaching conversations;
• Support for follow-up to ensure questions are answered and issues are resolved between meetings.

Retain and reinforce personality-based insight across the organization

For the first time ever, organizations can marry personality insights from Myers-Briggs (MBTI) assessments with talent management processes to optimize communication and collaboration across the organization.

The Halogen Myers-Briggs module is the result of an exclusive reseller partnership between Halogen Software and CPP Inc., the Myers-Briggs company. The module pulls employees' MBTI assessment results into the Halogen talent management suite, where they can be used across various talent processes to help develop talent, build stronger teams and transform organizational performance.

Employees can use the Halogen Myers-Briggs module to see how their personality type compares with other employees who have shared their results. This helps employees see the similarities and differences between personality types, and helps them understand how to better interact with others.

"What I really like about this module is how it provides a comparative view with tips to help employees improve interaction and communication, and work better together," said Jamie O'Brien, talent development specialist, The Kansas City Southern Railway Company. "It's easy to see how this level of insight can help with team building, and support improved collaboration and engagement."

"There is no other solution in the market that incorporates personality assessment data so seamlessly into a talent management suite," said Mr. MacKay. "For the first time organizations can use personality insights via talent management programs to create a culture where employees understand how to work more effectively together, reduce conflict, build better teams and enhance leadership; all of which can have a tremendous impact on employee engagement."

Availability

Both the 1:1 Exchange module and the Halogen Myers-Briggs module are scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2013 with delivery of the next version of the Halogen talent management suite.