Human Capital Planning
Driving strategic success through human capital planning: how Corning links business and HR strategy to improve the value and impact of its HR function.
The HR function at Corning, Incorporated, considers human capital planning (HCP) a critical business process because of its transformational impact on the value the function delivers to the business and the way it delivers that value. With HCP, HR has the opportunity to get and keep a seat at the strategic decision making table.
Corning uses HCP to improve its ability to identify human capital implications of corporate strategy and reshape HR services to better support the business. This article shares the evolution of HCP at Corning, the process and tools in place, its business impact, and key lessons learned in designing and implementing this critical business process.
Corning: A Legacy of Innovation
The evolution of human capital planning at Corning directly reflects the history of Corning itself. Corning is a 150+ year-old firm with a record of successful process and materials innovation in support of life-changing products, a record that stretches all the way back to the invention of a shatter-resistant lens for railroad lanterns in 1874 (see Exhibit 1).
Corning has historically maintained a diverse portfolio of businesses based on a common desire to be first to market with products that have functional advantages for customers and strong intellectual property protection against potential competitors. Talented employees have remained central to the company 's ability to sustain an innovation-based business model, regardless of how the specific mix of products in the portfolio have changed over time.
A Wake-Up Call for Corning: The Impact of the Telecommunications Bubble
Corning 's traditional strategy of maintaining a balanced portfolio was sorely tested by the telecommunications boom of the late 1990s, which ended in one of the most difficult industry contractions since the boom-bust cycles
The HR function at Corning, Incorporated, considers human capital planning (HCP) a critical business process because of its transformational impact on the value the function delivers to the business and the way it delivers that value. With HCP, HR has the opportunity to get and keep a seat at the strategic decision making table.
Corning uses HCP to improve its ability to identify human capital implications of corporate strategy and reshape HR services to better support the business. This article shares the evolution of HCP at Corning, the process and tools in place, its business impact, and key lessons learned in designing and implementing this critical business process.
Corning: A Legacy of Innovation
The evolution of human capital planning at Corning directly reflects the history of Corning itself. Corning is a 150+ year-old firm with a record of successful process and materials innovation in support of life-changing products, a record that stretches all the way back to the invention of a shatter-resistant lens for railroad lanterns in 1874 (see Exhibit 1).
Corning has historically maintained a diverse portfolio of businesses based on a common desire to be first to market with products that have functional advantages for customers and strong intellectual property protection against potential competitors. Talented employees have remained central to the company 's ability to sustain an innovation-based business model, regardless of how the specific mix of products in the portfolio have changed over time.
A Wake-Up Call for Corning: The Impact of the Telecommunications Bubble
Corning 's traditional strategy of maintaining a balanced portfolio was sorely tested by the telecommunications boom of the late 1990s, which ended in one of the most difficult industry contractions since the boom-bust cycles