Top 5 Tips for Leaders to Reinvent Human Resources

From being viewed as a rather administrative division of a company, HR today is viewed as a strategic partner in a business. From tackling talent shortages, helping employees grow and perform well to setting high cultural standards, HR has a lot of its plate. The disruption in technology, workforce and culture has made keeping up a huge challenge.

Here are a few tips for HR leaders of the current generation that can help them make all the necessary adjustments and changes in such a dynamic environment.

1. Make Culture Your #1 Priority

Culture has always been an important aspect of growth, but the need for it is felt more than ever in the current times. Companies can no longer afford to ignore their cultures as that is the first thing candidates scan even before they apply for a position. Transparency is at its top with platforms like LinkedIn and Glassdoor enabling employees and employers to highlight their work environments in an open manner. Culture hence should be at the top of your agenda, with an aim of hiring those who are not just a cultural fit, but also who help bring a true kind of diversity to the company.

2. Invest In Your Employees

Your current employees, whether they are star performers or not need your constant attention. We live in competitive times and each one of your employees wants to be in a job that makes him/her feel truly fulfilled. Especially with the millennials and GenZ coming into the workforce in large numbers, the hunt for a job that inspires and helps them grow is a pre-requisite. Be it revamping performance improvement plans, creating mentorship programs, offering educational opportunities or giving them flexibility, make sure you invest in your talent, so that their growth spills over to the business as well through lower turnover rates and higher engagement.

3. Understand The Business

It is very common for HR to get trapped in the daily mundane activities. But the role of HR is much more than just getting payroll out, tracking attendance or filling up forms. These roles are definitely important but shouldn’t overwhelm HR and make them oversee their real value. HR leaders should be able to move out of these monotonous activities and see how they can align their objectives to business priorities. This should include a mandatory revision of the performance of the processes and decisions undertaken in the last six to twelve months. Only by understanding the business will HR be able to contribute to its growth.

4. Inspire Through Actions

The most important role of HR is to have people who genuinely care about the people they look after, possess leadership qualities to set standards through examples. As an HR leader, you need to inspire people and help them understand the value that they bring with their contribution. Great HR leaders set superior examples of character and standards for the rest to follow. They truly inspire others through their strength, confidence, goodwill and hard work. They understand the importance of a positive workplace culture which is why they are always away from participating in office politics or gossip. At the same time, they do not ignore unwanted behavior or unprofessionalism which is why they are also capable of undertaking strict actions.

5. Build An Agile Organizational Structure

Organizations can no longer rely on traditional and static models to carry out their functions. An agile approach is a must to survive the competition, and HR leaders should steer such initiatives. CHROs can choose the right strategies and technologies to design workforce models that can help organizations hire and retain better, adjust in real time and be dynamic in their approach. For example, recruitment can no longer rely on old ways of sourcing, hiring and retaining talent. The traditional processes need to be adjusted in a way that fits the current demands of the workforce and the talent requirements of the organization.