Give HR a break!

HR have got enough on their plate without being told they should be considering brand impact in advance of people changes. Or that a focus on employee wellbeing and workplace culture is the ticket to future-proofing the business. When will they say: “Enough is enough! Show me a little support and collaboration, then we can talk!”

I think if I worked in HR right now, I’d be seriously considering a pivot...The expectations being placed on HR - often by third parties - are huge. Well-meaning HR-focused podcasts and articles talk about the need to consider internal and external brand (i.e. how the company is perceived by employees and the outside world) when the organisation is making people changes. And to advise senior leaders accordingly, helping get the messaging bang on.

There’s also much talk about the need to build on the current focus by some leaders on their people. This is about placing a much wider and deeper focus on employee wellbeing and workplace culture to help cement long-term employee loyalty and engagement. Long-held evidence shows this brings many sustainable benefits to business: from customer service to productivity and profitability. It’s this kind of approach that will undoubtedly help organisations through the current tough times, better able to thrive in the new normal.

The rhetoric is spot on. 

It’s the roadmap that’s seriously lacking. And, arguably, was always lacking pre Covid-19.

While third parties quite rightly point out the need for the senior exec to take the reins on culture, this is ultimately a people matter and history dictates that people matters fall to HR.

And therein lies the elephant in the room. 

HR have neither the time, the experience or – faced with a mountain of other things to do – the impetus to focus on such a monumental task. It simply won’t happen. 

I should imagine, right now, HR professionals have enough to do. They’ve survived the initial crisis management phase during the mass shift to remote working and furloughing. Now, they’re busy trying to figure out answers to a new set of impossible questions about the transition back to work. Plus, pressure from above to come up with potential cost cutting measures. All that on top of their existing commitments with regards to pay, performance, policies and practice.

It’s time to communicate 

Leadership endorsement and leading by example represent great starting points with regards to building a wellbeing-centric culture. 

But consider for a moment what it takes to genuinely and consistently build and maintain a culture of employee and organisational wellbeing:

·    Employee insights: You need to speak to your people on a regular basis, not just once a year – using a variety of ways and means – to really understand their needs, their motivations, their stressors and their information consuming habits. What makes them get up in a morning and come to work for your company?

·     Strong purpose, ethos and values: You need to identify what the company stands for – what’s its purpose and ethos? (your Employer Value Proposition or EVP, if we’re being technical). Then ensure that leadership actions align with this. And that all communications are purpose and value driven. 

·    Strategic communication: You need to design a communication programme aligned with HR goals and overall business strategy: with your audience and channels carefully segmented according to real-life insights, and with metrics aligned to the key issues the business is trying to address: from absenteeism to retention.

Considering the above, is it any wonder that HR haven’t managed to squeeze in this task just yet?

Collaboration is essential 

This could in fact be the moment Internal Communication (IC) professionals, in particular, have been waiting for. They might not realise it yet, after years of being considered the corporate post-box. They might need some initial encouragement. But, if the IC professionals I met last year on a strategic IC course are anything to go by, they should grab the challenge with both hands. This is the ultimate opportunity to gain that coveted ‘trusted adviser’ status.

I found it a real eye-opener, after years of working in Corporate Communications in the employee benefits world, these senior IC people – all of whom worked for big organisations – rarely worked with HR. And when they did, it wasn’t anything to do with employee wellbeing.

The pandemic has shone a light on wellbeing and corporate culture like never before. Values are being tested. And HR can’t do this alone. Collaboration is essential. Not only cross departmental but also with employee benefit providers and consultants. This is a real opportunity for IC to step up and prove their mettle. And a real test for all those third parties to see if they can actually walk the talk.