For Emerging CHROs

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It’s always a pleasure to return to my alma mater, XLRI, Jamshedpur. This week, I was a part of the convocation ceremony of PGDM (HRM) program for Emerging CHROs. Sharing excerpts of my messages to them.

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?Our world has never been faster or more complex in the change and nature of events unfolding around us – irrespective of the cause (macroeconomic, geopolitical, health, social and civil unrest), businesses are experiencing an intertwined impact. Further, there is a loss of trust in institutions of all kinds and a recent Edelman report called out how organizations are looked up to, to set the right norms for society and encouraging “civil discourse”.??Whatever the challenge for a business - transformation, culture, strategy the one function that is critical to success is Human Resources because it is the quality of talent and leadership decisions that determine success or failure.?

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There is no better time to be a CHRO who can truly become the transformational force within an organization.? Sharing five lessons I have learnt in my journey as a CHRO.

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1.?????? Primacy of a Shared business goal.?Functional Silos are counterproductive. We must drive alignment and connectedness. And to be able to do this HR leaders must understand the business?and develop a deep appreciation for commercial issues. The people agenda must be owned and delivered by business leaders, and HR must work to catalyse that ownership by creating an overarching ambition. For my team and me it is to add 1% more growth to our business.?

2.?????? Marry long term Strategy with everyday operating might. Grand visions without actionable plans are a recipe for failure. To be effective one must be able to balance long-term strategy with clear, actionable steps and operational rigor. Take pride in execution and track outcomes more than the innovative programs you launch.

3.?????? Prioritize and then cut out the noise.?Find a few things that matter to the business, evaluate where you will be able to make the most impact. If the company is headed for a pivot, then enable that by obsessively focusing on the culture. If the business is keen to become more agile, then focus on an organization design that helps land agility. It does not mean that other priorities don’t matter, just disproportionately invest in a few, and for the rest, empower your teams.?

4.?????? Be the conscience keeper of the organization; say the hard no over a ‘pleasing’ yes. While I stress on the importance of being a partner and an ally to the business, HR is the conscience keeper of the organization even when the odds are stacked against. I have experienced that discerning business leaders respect HR partners who can speak “truth to power” over those who stoop to serve.

Understand the ‘Purpose’ of what you do and don’t forget the Human. HR as a function needs to be more confident of our collective impact. Build that higher ‘purpose’ of what we do for e.g. we don’t just hire people but bring in stunning talent who can lead for transformation,?we don’t just drive training workshops, rather, we build distinctive capabilities, we don’t run ‘engagement programs’ but seed in a high-performance culture where people thrive. Finally, as a CHRO one must not forget the Human and I define that as being compassionate and fair. All too often, people confuse being a good HR partner, with being friendly and nice. You would rather be respected than popular. Let the true barometer of success, not be how popular you are but the change you are able to drive.