Expertise: The Future Of Work, Human Capital, Change Management, Transformation, Leadership, Performance Review, Collaboration, Strategic Management
Dr. Anna Tavis is a recognized thought leader and compelling speaker on HR and the future of work. She is currently developing the Centre for the Future of Work at NYU, where she is an Associate Professor of Human Capital Management.
In her talks, Professor Tavis breaks down her research into the sea-change that is occurring within performance management. She explains why many companies are radically changing their annual review systems in favour of giving people less formal, more frequent feedback. She analyses the potential of these transformations to free up innovation, collaboration, and creativity among their employees.
However, HR professionals should not initiate a performance management revolution before deciding what they want their end performance management system to look like. Dr. Tavis offers insight into how to find the natural rhythm of your organization and its people by embarking on a cultural discovery process. She discusses how to adjust the timing of your feedback to the natural cycle of work at your organization. She also explores the best ways to reward good performers and identify bad performers, align individual and company goals, avoid legal troubles, and get—and keep—executive sponsorship.
Dr. Tavis publishes regularly in the HR media and has been quoted by the Washington Post, Bloomberg, The Human Resources Executive, Training Magazine. Dr. Tavis’ Harvard Business Review articles HR Goes Agile (2018) and The Performance Management Revolution (2016) were reprinted in HBR’s Must Reads (2016 & 2018) Definitive Management Ideas of the Year (2016 and 2018) and in Agile: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review (2020).
Her article “The Performance Management Revolution” was co-written with Peter Capelli, Professor of Management and Director of the Center for Human Resources at The Wharton School. It appeared in the Harvard Business Review in October 2016.
She is a frequent presenter at international conferences on the topics of Future of Work, People Analytics and Technology, Employee Experience and Intelligent Automation in the Workplace.
Dr. Tavis published two volumes of edited essays Point/Counterpoint: The New Perspectives on People and Strategy (SHRM 2013 and 2017) that are approved for HR professional certification credit and is currently co-authoring a book The Future of HR, forthcoming in 2020.
Previously she was on the faculty at Williams College, Fairfield University and Columbia University. She was the head of Motorola’s EMEA OD function based in London, Nokia’s global head of talent management based in Helsinki, chief learning officer with United Technologies Corp and global head of talent and organizational development with AIG Investments based. Has a PhD in comparative literature from Princeton University and Executive MBA in international business from the University of South Carolina.
Dr. Tavis speaks English, Russian, German and Spanish.