By Amy Schabacker Dufrane
I’m veering off my usual topics this month to offer a travelogue. A few months ago, I had the absolute pleasure of visiting the ultimate start-up nation, Israel, as part of a group of HR and talent management professionals. Organized by two of the HR industry’s most remarkable thought leaders, Gerry Crispin, SPHR and China Gorman, aPHR, with support from Nanda Journeys, our goal was to learn how companies hire, train, deploy and retain their people.
Established in 1948, Israel is regarded by Jews, Christians, and Muslims as the Biblical Holy Land. Among its sacred sites is the city of Jerusalem, one of the oldest cities in the world. Known for its strong technology sector powered by innovation and highly educated workforce, military service for men and women is compulsory. Israel has many communications, software, information systems, finance, medicine, and law professionals. International business is conducted in English, with local business more often in Hebrew, and the typical work week runs from Sunday through Thursday.
We met with a variety of organizations, including the Israeli Government Workforce Committee, US Embassy, many HR technology solutions providers, and local businesses. We also had the good fortune to visit noteworthy sights: the Old City of Jerusalem, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Wailing Wall, Bahai Gardens, and much more.
Israel has a fast-paced business environment that rewards personal connections and networking. The culture places a great deal of emphasis on getting to know others and hospitality. We were hosted several times during our trip, and these moments really made us feel connected and valued as visitors to this energetic country.
Overall, I was mesmerized by their talent. The HR talent, the talent they seek, the talent they train, the talent they retain. The depth of collaboration and innovation. The lasting impact and learnings from the shared military experience. And how much we are all the same, even given our geographic distance and unique challenges, One of my fellow travelers, Marti Bookstein, SPHR, said it best: “I appreciated meeting new people, learning new concepts and ideas, and attempting to verify the (presumed) worldwide human elements of work; people everywhere indeed have their idiosyncrasies, but we are surely more alike at heart than we may want to admit. And somehow that’s reaffirming.”
Our group was also struck by the practical and resourceful Israeli mindset. It wasn’t entirely surprising, given the courageous history behind the founding of the country and its service requirements. Marti was reassured to know that even with mandatory military service, some entry-level workers required training to learn basic workforce skills and behaviors such as teamwork. Consistent with the culture, there’s strong encouragement to face problems individually with critical thinking, going back over and over until a solution is found. Managers tend to be collaborative, and creativity is appreciated.
Innovation is part of the Israeli DNA, and they are excited to share it with the world. They’re focused on how to build company culture yet face many of the same problems the rest of the world faces: a growing talent shortage and diversity and inclusion. What the rest of the world isn’t necessarily facing daily is living in a conflict zone.
Consistent around the globe, HR experts in Israel are getting creative about finding talent. In some companies, Palestinians comprise more than 75% of the workforce and, despite long- standing friction, are working side-by-side. Tapping into the Orthodox Jewish women’s community brings qualified talent into the workforce while advancing diversity and inclusion goals. We had several sessions that helped us to see how the tensions and opportunities are playing out with ultra-religious, Palestinian, Druze and other minority groups in terms of opportunity, accommodation, and impact on the nation as a whole.
Self-professed lifelong student and tour co-host, Gerry Crispin, SPHR, observed that Israel has taken a global lead in support of the hiring of people with disabilities. Their programs are amazing and attributed to work over the last few decades by Access Israel, a non-profit that has built out workable methods and training and, in 2017, passed a law that all firms with twenty- five employees or more must support a full-time professional responsible for the hiring and accommodation of people with disabilities.
“The world is the true classroom,” said TV personality and zookeeper Jack Hanna. “The most rewarding and important type of learning is through experience, seeing something with our own eyes.” I couldn’t agree more. Visiting Israel with my colleagues to learn directly from our counterparts there has provoked new insights and built new relationships. We might live in different places, but we share so much in common.
