NEW YORK, Sept. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, and partner of The Economist's "Ideas Economy: Human Potential" conference, explained how companies can build a collaborative organization in the Human Age, an era that demands companies find ways to engage and empower employees to increase productivity.

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Mara Swan, ManpowerGroup Executive Vice President of Global Strategy and Talent, moderated a panel at the prestigious event, which draws C-level executives from government, academia and industry. The panel, titled "Collaboration in the Human Age," explored the need for employees to collaborate to deliver higher value, as employers who have squeezed all the efficiencies out of systems and process are nevertheless faced with new demands for innovation and productivity.

"In an environment of uncertainty and intense competition, companies are required to employ innovative people practices that enable collaboration and in turn lead to a more engaged workforce," said Swan. "Businesses that successfully foster collaboration to harness the talent of employees and help them drive increased value for their organization will be the ones who win. In turn, employees' sense of purpose becomes better aligned with a company so they are then more engaged, eager to contribute and understand how they help the organization achieve its objectives."

Today's businesses are challenged by requiring increased efficiency and productivity at a time when their workforces are already doing more than ever before. Desire to shift to a collaborative work environment to ramp up efficiency is quickly gaining traction. According to a recent study by IBM, collaboration is the number one trait CEOs expect from their employees, with 75% of CEOs believing it to be critical.

Despite this trend towards companies seeking collaborative candidates, ManpowerGroup's 2012 Talent Shortage Survey found that, globally, collaboration is the second most commonly identified employability skill employers find lacking in candidates after interpersonal skills and enthusiasm / motivation. 

"The game has changed requires a mindset shift towards 360-degree collaboration versus working in silos," added Swan. "Leaders need to first identify what collaboration is — and is not — within their organization and define the clear outcome that they are trying to achieve. Once they have made the case for collaboration, they must define the behaviors and mindsets to support it."

Joining Swan at the "Collaboration in the Human Age" session were the following panellists:

• Thomas Malone, Patrick J. McGovern professor of management, MIT Sloan School of Management; founding director, MIT Center for Collective Intelligence
• Scot Tutkovics, Vice President of Engineering for the Control and Visualization Business (CVB) at Rockwell Automation
• Deborah Borg, Vice President of Human Capital Planning and Development at The Dow Chemical Company  

More details on the panel can be found at: http://www.manpowergroup.com/press/potential2012.cfm

About ManpowerGroup

ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, creates and delivers high-impact solutions that enable our clients to achieve their business goals and enhance their competitiveness. With over 60 years of experience, our $22 billion company creates unique time to value through a comprehensive suite of innovative solutions that help clients win in the Human Age. These solutions cover an entire range of talent-driven needs from recruitment and assessment, training and development, and career management, to outsourcing and workforce consulting. ManpowerGroup maintains the world's largest and industry-leading network of nearly 3,900 offices in 80 countries and territories, generating a dynamic mix of an unmatched global footprint with valuable insight and local expertise to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, across all industry sectors, small and medium-sized enterprises, local, multinational and global companies. By connecting our deep understanding of human potential to the ambitions of clients, ManpowerGroup helps the organizations and individuals we serve achieve more than they imagined — because their success leads to our success. And by creating these powerful connections, we create power that drives organizations forward, accelerates personal success and builds more sustainable communities. We help power the world of work. The ManpowerGroup suite of solutions is offered through ManpowerGroup™ Solutions, Manpower®, Experis™ and Right Management®. Learn more about how the ManpowerGroup can help you win in the Human Age at www.manpowergroup.com.

ManpowerGroup is the most trusted brand in the industry, and was once again the only company in our industry to be named to the Ethisphere Institute's 2012 World's Most Ethical Companies list for our proven commitment to ethical business practices, including an outstanding commitment to ethical leadership, compliance practices and corporate social responsibility.

In January 2011, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, ManpowerGroup announced the world has entered the Human Age, where talent has replaced capital as the key competitive differentiator. This concept of talentism as the new capitalism continues to resonate and was echoed as a core theme of the 2012 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Learn more about this new age at www.manpowergroup.com/humanage

Gain access to ManpowerGroup's extensive thought leadership papers, annual Talent Shortage surveys and the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, one of the most trusted indices of employment activity in the world, via the ManpowerGroup World of Work Insight iPad application. This thought leadership app explores the challenges faced by employers navigating the changing world of work and provides in-depth commentary, analysis, insight and advice on strategies for success. 

Follow ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO Jeff Joerres on Twitter: twitter.com/manpowergroupjj. Joerres is one of only 20 Fortune 500 CEOs who leverages a Twitter account to get his message out.

SOURCE ManpowerGroup