How HR can be part of the good news.
Most of you reading this will be in a HR position. Which is a shame because it's an article for the whole company. In fact most elements of HR are an issue for the whole company. Unfortunately, despite the great work by many people and many good companies, the general view of HR is that they are necessary evil. A cost to bear to prevent bad things happening.
The idea for this article came about after I met the owner of HRLocker After seeing the product I was pretty impressed and when the I heard the price I was blown away. My immediate question was "Why isn't everyone buying this?". Whilst they have a good client base they didn't have everyone and didn't know why. So I took it to a friendly HR Director who works at a household name. They looked through and confirmed it was a great product at a great price. What was said next though is the reason for this article and the reason I have not named the HR person.
"We have no control over the budget. We are generally here to break bad news and manage fall outs."
I was lucky enough recently to work with a few great HR people so at first I thought this was a fluke, unique to this company, surely not a part of the modern HR world? So I thought I would Google "Are HR departments respected?" The answer came before I finished typing as the top suggestions were "Are HR necessary?" and "Are HR departments useless?"
So why haven't things changed in 30 years and what can be done to change it?
I think these things are tied together. Companies (you can assume I'm using the word 'most' from here on in) buy HR out fear. Fear of getting things wrong and ending up in court mostly. So HR end up with the jobs that only occur when something has gone wrong or is going wrong or is about to go wrong. To change the perception of HR, HR need to start getting involved when things are going right.
Take Control.
HR needs to take more control of the good news. A lot of the time they only hear about promotions after they've happened. When payroll need informing, a job title needs changing or a new contract writing up.
It is probably a bit of a stretch to think that there is any chance of a manager willingly passing on the responsibility of promoting someone however there is no reason why HR couldn't be present. And once you are present then you should be ready to show how you are part of of growth. Questions like "Is there anything we can provide to help you do this job to the best of your abilities?" or "Do you have any immediate thoughts on the first thing you'd like to get done?".
Recommend others.
No one in the business is better placed to know the skills of the staff than HR. So next time you see a problem think, "Is there anyone else in the business who may be able to help resolve this?". People love to be involved and aiding collaboration is a good way to be loved and respected. Also when the business studies graduate who was working in the post room is now in charge of distribution and I knock on your door to present a solution that requires buy in from all the managers you'll know who to bring on side first to help get it done
Broaden your horizons
This goes for all departments but easier for HR to do than most. Spending a day month on the floor of another department can be hugely beneficial. Accounts have problems Sales can solve, Sales have problems Marketing can solve. They all have problems you can solve. Being that bridge brings you to the centre of the company.
Broader than that
Most HR people I've known love to attend training and networking. However (and again this is a lesson for everyone) they like to attend things relevant to HR, attended by other HR people. Next time there is an industry event get yourself down there. How good is this question for Dave from accounting? (there's always a Dave). "I've got a pretty good grip on what accounting does here at The Paper St. Soap Company but I'd like to understand more about the wider issues facing your profession. Do you mind if join you for the networking session in Slough next week?"
Walk the talk
More often, HR is looked upon with fear and treated with aloofness. Ones who instead of bridging the gap are faulted for creating difficulties. An addition that the company could do without; or rather, manage internally. Implementing and making the journey employee friendly can prove to be quite wearisome, if not supported by the entire staff. You will only be taken seriously, when you show some initiative, when you have a case study to present and when you have a loyal clan supporting you through thick and thin
Speak English.
Knowledge Management, Employee Engagement, Organisational Effectiveness, Increasing Bandwidth. Jargon and buzzwords distance others. If any role should be avoiding these it should be HR. Plain speaking is the order of the day.
Know the financial benefits.
"Can I buy x because it will make things easier to track?" "Can I buy x because it's easier to use than the current system?" "Can I buy x because it will save the company thousands?" Another plug for HRlocker here. HRlocker does all those things but it is only the 3rd question that will be answered yes. Everyone else in the organisation understands this but too often I see HR people forgetting that everyone, even them, have to be sales people sometimes. And the best sales people don't talk about the features of a product they talk about the benefits. "If we buy this it will free up more time to do X and X generates Y $s"
Ditch the time wasters
Pareto's Law, more widely known as the 80/20 rule. 80% of your work will be created by 20% of your clients. Free up time with some straight talking to those that lean too much on you. It will help them grow if you remove that crutch. Also give yourself some straight talking and see what jobs you are doing that aren't necessary. You have an easy access to dramatic improvements by focusing on the most effective areas and eliminating, ignoring, automating, delegating or retraining the rest,
Well hopefully there are a lot of you still reading and hopefully some of you are not HR but people with the power to demand more and give more to your HR partner. HR is central at the top companies. Why isn't it at yours?
If you've enjoyed this article please give it a like and share. Or feel to tell me why I'm wrong down at the bottom. Have a read through some of my other articles to. Hopefully there is something for everyone.
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The cat in the hat.
8 年Thank you to everyone who has shared and commented. My book is out now. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01MDRF86C