04 Feb A 50 Best-Managed Company in Canada Demonstrates Human Capital Excellence
“PI® reinforces Flynn’s deep belief in the value of our people. It provides a common language that we use to better understand both individual and team dynamics and gain a deeper insight into our employees. It is our employees who represent the key to our past, present and future success.”
– Gerard Montocchio, Vice President of HR
Flynn Canada Ltd. is Canada’s largest contractor for combined roofing, glazing and curtain wall services. The company, founded in 1978, has grown to 3000 employees and serves the entire Canadian commercial & industrial construction marketplace. They have been named one of Canada’s 50 best-managed companies since 1999, which illustrates the highest level of commitment to both their employees and clients.
Company Challenge:
The company has seen a dramatic annual growth rate of 10 to 15% over the past 10 years. Along with the benefits of this level of growth, come challenges as well.
Flynn takes pride in its close-knit, high-touch culture. Gerard Montocchio, VP of HR explains, “We don’t want to become a highly regulated, policy-driven organization. As the company grows, we want to preserve our culture. The company’s teamwork and commitment to building genuine relationships are what give Flynn its competitive edge – whether with its employees, customers, business partners or the environment. Each member of the team has an integral role in the company’s success. In the early years, the company was small, and it was easier for the executive team to get to know people on an individual basis. The company’s rapid growth has made it more difficult to gain that close contact and personal insight.”
Gerard, who joined the Flynn team in 2008, used the behavioral assessment tool, the Predictive Index® (PI®) extensively in previous positions throughout his career, and knew PI® would be a valuable asset to Flynn for employee development, team building, hiring the right people for the right jobs, as well as leadership development. He introduced PI® at an executive level. The team completed the PI® and was amazed by the results. They were extremely impressed by the fact that PI® took just a few minutes to complete, yet gave so much insight and understanding into people’s behavior. Most of the team had worked together for many years and validated the accuracy of PI based on their experience.
Predictive Index in Practice:
Flynn began using The PI® Behavioral Assessment combined with The PI Job Assessment, a PI® companion tool that profiles the behavioral requirements of the job, for both external and internal hiring. The HR department has been fully trained in PI, including Flynn’s regional offices. Gerard shares, “We have a highly collaborative work environment, and operate as a partnership. As other areas of the organization have seen the value of PI, there has been a high level of adoption based on PI’s success.”
Flynn uses PI to ensure strong job fit by establishing internal benchmarks to determine the key job elements for roles within the organization. For employees who seek redeployment to another role within the company, their PIs are examined in relation to the behavioral requirements of the job, prior to placement. Several staff members from within the finance organization were recently assigned to roles where their PIs suggested they could be more effective. The changes have been a great success for both the individuals and the organization.
According to Gerard, “PI has been a great foundational tool for building Flynn’s HR function. It has added valuable insight as well as structure to our hiring process. We promote from within the organization, and PI is a very good indicator of an employee’s potential for success in a future role or leadership position. For example, a person may be quite good at the technical aspects of the job, but may find it difficult to delegate responsibilities to others. PI® uncovers those behaviors or work styles that lead to the right job fit.”
The company recruits overseas in countries such as Germany and Poland. The application of PI® in different languages adds to the versatility of the tool. Using PI® to hire internationally, for positions in Canada, has been essential for creating strong job profiles and identifying the right trades people for these positions.
Flynn uses PI® as a management tool to identify gaps or areas where employees may need additional job training or coaching to ensure long term success. Flynn’s managers can gain insight into the different managerial needs of their staff by using PI®. A manager may interact with two members of their team in the same manner, and receive different responses. Managers use PI® to understand the needs and motivators of their staff so they can communicate more effectively and better manage their teams.
Flynn also uses PI® for conflict resolution. When a conflict arises, PI® provides the insight to discuss the PIs of both individuals in a nonconfrontational way. This insight enables them to modify their approach with each other, and better understand their strengths and differences so they can work more effectively together.
Career Development and Education:
Flynn is preparing to launch its virtual university comprised of a series of workshops and action-driven learning programs. The mission of the university is to: accelerate the development of current and future leaders, transfer Flynn’s best practices across the organization, and give all employees the critical business and life skills to ensure the long term success of the company.
The initial workshop will focus on self-awareness, where employees can prepare to take ownership of their own development. The Predictive Index will play a key role in creating an awareness of their behavior, focusing on communication and decision making style and the effect this behavior will have on their future impact on the company. PI will provide the insight to identify their strengths and areas for growth.
In other workshops, PI will help groups identify team roles — from defining strategies to communicating goals and completing detail-oriented tasks. The faculty will use PI profiles to identify group dynamics as they prepare their training and delivery style. Through the university, high-potential leaders will be given the opportunity to interact with a broad group of peers, which would otherwise be difficult, given the company’s geographic spread. This will increase their confidence and capability as they encounter future business challenges..
Extending Success into the Future:
Flynn expects to double in size in the next five to seven years in response to market opportunities. The CEO and his team have built a high-performance business by focusing on employees as individuals and addressing their unique workplace needs. Flynn understands the relationship between helping its employees reach their goals, while building the trust and confidence it takes to achieve outstanding results.
Gerard concludes, “PI reinforces Flynn’s deep belief in the value of our people. It provides a common language that we use to better understand both individual and team dynamics and gain a deeper insight into our employees. It is our employees who represent the key to our past, present and future success.”