The re-branding of HR

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 08:45

A Practical Guide to Improving the Credibility (and Success) of the Human Resources Function INTRODUCTION The writer has facilitated many HR strategy workshops over the past few years and, when doing a position analysis of the function (where are we?), typical comments include: I feel HR is stuck! Desperately trying to add value to the business. We are seen as a necessary evil. Lacking in credibility. Dont have great relationships with line management. We are not in a position to say that we are offering a strategic service. Of course, in some instances there are positive comments as well but, on average, the negative views and perceptions outweigh the positive. Simply stated, in many companies HR has a credibility problem. The solution in most cases is not to broaden or deepen the range of products and services, but rather to engage in more meaningful relationships with the line, starting with a thorough understanding of their real needs. HR needs to employ a healthy dose of selling and marketing skills, as well as the principles of CRM (all strongly underpinned by EQ). In a nutshell, we need more selling and less telling! Today, many organisations are talking about the re-branding of HR. An article appeared in the August 2005 edition of Fast Company untitled Why we hate HR? The author suggested there are four main reasons, namely: HR people arent the sharpest tacks in the box. HR pursues efficiency in lieu of value. HR isnt working for you. The corner office [i.e. top management] doesnt get HR, and vice versa. So, what can we do about it? What follows is a set of practical guidelines and recommendations. A USEFUL STARTING POINT: REVISITING THE ULRICH MODEL

In 1996 Dave Ulrich published HR Champions, which included the now-famous categorisation of HR into the following four roles: Formulating and executing strategy (strategic partner) Building an efficient infrastructure (administrative expert) Increasing employee capability and commitment (employee champion) Creating a renewed organisation (change agent) A useful point of departure is to score your HR department on each of the above-mentioned roles. Ideally, the scoring should be done by both the line and HR (separately). The scores of these two groups will provide rich information regarding the actual as well as the perceived contribution of HR. This will establish a snapshot of the current role and performance of HR. Naturally, this will form the basis of a fair amount of debate, discussion and (hopefully healthy) disagreement! Subsequently, one needs to ask the question: What role do we want HR to play in the future? The difference between the existing role and the desired future role then becomes the HR gap. Emanating from this, companies should introduce appropriate gap-closing interventions. In general, HRs role as a strategic partner achieves the lowest score, whereas its role as administrative expert (payroll processing, benefits administration etc) is usually assigned the highest score. Clearly, a large number of HR departments are struggling with the role of strategic partner. ACHIEVING HR SUCCESS: 10 KEY ELEMENTS 1. Client Focus This starts with a proper identification of the client base. Who are we meant to serve? Are there different client segments (e.g. senior management, junior management, supervisors, other employees)? What are the profiles of each of these segments? What are their expectations from HR? How do we best serve them? What does it mean to treat all employees as clients? (Culture and climate studies often reveal that employees feel that they are treated as irritations when engaging with HR.) Ideally, HR should adopt a client-centric approach. 2. Needs-driven HR This relates strongly to the previous point. For HR to have credibility, it is essential that they have a comprehensive understanding of the specific HR-related needs of the various client segments. Importantly, one should understand that this is a dynamic rather than a static thing: needs evolve over time, depending on a multitude of factors. The entire HR infrastructure should be attuned to servicing these needs. To the extent that it is possible, this should be more proactive than reactive. 3. Offering the Right Products and Services Is HR providing the right products and services based on the real needs of the organisation? Frequently HR offerings are determined mainly by the capabilities and experience of HR staff,

rather than a proper needs analysis. Significantly, one should conduct a regular review: which products and services should stay as is? Which should be modified? Which should be deleted? Do we need to add any new products and services? It goes without saying that this process should not only involve HR specialists; line managers and representatives from other client groups must also participate in this important exercise. 4. Right HR People with the Right Competencies The key to achieving success is obviously to have the right HR people in the right positions. Do your HR employees have the right knowledge, skills and attributes? Do they keep abreast of leading edge developments in the field by, for example, attending seminars (both locally and abroad), reading the latest HR literature and visiting best practice organisations? In the old days HR people did not need to have a good understanding of business in the broader sense. This has changed, and HR specialists are now required to have a deeper knowledge of business. Sadly (and ironically) one finds that many HR practitioners are not people people! The ideal professional is well qualified in HR, has a business mindset, is customer-oriented and has a caring attitude/affinity with people. 5. Right People: HR Leadership HR needs to have the right leaders leaders who are able to get the most out of their staff, are able to grow them and provide direction so that the HR capabilities are properly aligned with the organisational needs. HR leaders also need to be able to connect with and influence other stakeholder groups, such as line management and the unions. It is vital that HR directors and managers be respected by all key stakeholders. The following questions serve as powerful indicators of the credibility of HR leadership: How much time does the Head of HR spend with the CEO? Is the Head of HR on the board of directors? To what extent is the Head of HR involved in the overall business strategy process? 6. Ability to Market and Sell HR Often HR departments have tremendous breadth and depth with regard to HR knowledge and skills, but lack the ability to market and sell themselves and their products/services to the rest of the organisation. For HR to have the desired impact, more emphasis needs to be placed on marketing and selling (obviously not in the over-aggressive sense). It is a well-established fact that before anyone buys your products or services, they must first buy you otherwise there will be no sale. This is an important concept for HR practitioners to understand. There are many marketing principles that could potentially benefit HR, such as buyer behaviour, branding, the concept of STP (segmentation, targeting and positioning), the marketing mix (including product, promotions, pricing and place - the classical 4 Ps), the product life-cycle and differentiation. Of course, one is not suggesting that all HR people should become marketing

specialists. However, an understanding of core marketing and selling principles - on a selective basis - will undoubtedly assist in turbo-charging the HR function. 7. Becoming a Business Partner/ CRM Today it has become fashionable for HR departments to re-style themselves as business partners. But what does this mean? Is it merely a cosmetic re-naming, or does it have tangible and value-adding implications for the organisation? For HR to be a credible business partner, it has to have a thorough understanding of the needs, objectives and functioning of the business. Following from this, HR should have the capabilities to provide the required products and services to support its various business partners. This partnership is underpinned by mutual respect and trust and meaningful two-way conversations. Often this is formalised as a service level agreement (SLA), which contains the rules of engagement between HR and its partners. Whereas it is useful to establish a series of SLAs, it is perhaps even more important for HR to establish and nurture constructive and value-adding relationships with all its business partners. In this regard, the tools and techniques of client relationship management (CRM) can be usefully applied by HR. To reinforce its commitment to supporting the line, a well-known motor car manufacturer strategically places its HR practitioners (referred to as HR business partners) in close proximity to their designated clients. The message from HR is: we are informed, involved and integrated with your business operation. 8. Image, Reputation and Credibility of HR In any organisation, HR develops a particular image or reputation over time, which is closely linked to the response to the question: is HR perceived as adding substantial value to the organisation? Although it is very difficult to accurately quantify the value-add of HR, most line managers will offer an emphatic yes or no when asked this question. The important issue of image and reputation should not be allowed to just happen over time it should be actively managed. The key issue of credibility is largely determined by HRs track record of delivering on its promises, consistently and timeously. Beware of over-promising and under-delivering! In this regard, trust and reliability are important elements. 9. Managing HR as a Business For HR to be professionally run, it needs to be managed in line with sound business principles. This implies inter alia the following: It continuously weighs up both the costs and benefits of HR products, services and interventions. HR focuses both on efficiency (doing things right, in the language of Peter Drucker) and on effectiveness (doing the right things). On an ongoing basis, it explores new and creative ways of tackling issues. It can make tough business decisions when necessary, balanced with the ability to show

empathy and be caring when dealing with sensitive HR issues. It does not narrowly ask: What is best for HR? Rather, the question that it asks is: What is best for the business as a whole? Business value-add, contribution and impact on the bottom-line are core elements of HR thinking and practice. It considers both the short- and long-term implications of HR decisions and actions. This includes a strong focus on the sustainability of HR solutions. 10. HR Strategy Supports Business Strategy HR strategy cannot be formulated in a vacuum; it needs to be supportive of and properly integrated with the overall business strategy. Thus, when compiling a strategic plan for HR, the starting point is to firstly examine the business strategy and then to ask the question: what does HR need to do to ensure that the mission, vision, objectives and strategies of the organisation are realised? Also, when reviewing (and modifying) the business strategy, the implications for HR need to be carefully thought through. In order to ensure that the HR strategy is sufficiently supportive of the business strategy, it makes a lot of sense to invite a few line managers to participate in the HR strategy workshop. This will also reinforce the business partnering concept and help to get buy-in and commitment to the HR strategy. IN SUMMARY: MOVING FROM GOOD TO GREAT The following schematic, which has been used by the writer in several consulting assignments, provides a concise summary of the key issues discussed in this article.

Rebranding HR function
Saturday, 27 June 2009 12:47

Memory Nguwi THERE has been a lot of talk at seminars and conferences about the crafting of human resources (HR) strategies for the unprecedented times that we are in. This is well and good, but crafting strategies without implementation amounts to nothing. Why are the strategies not being implemented? Some answers that arise are that there is no buy in from top management. Is this a problem with top management or with HR divisions? It is beginning to dawn on human resources personnel that they have lost credibility both with management and employees. Just what is the perceived worth of the HR function in organisations? Is it seen merely as an administrative function that processes leave forms, recruits, administers the payroll, handles employee grievances and implements discipline and dismissals when necessary? If you are in HR then you need to ask yourself the following questions: - Do you influence your companys direction? - Do you contribute to corporate discussions about customers, products and strategies? - Are you a participant in senior level meetings? - Do you initiate people programmes and processes? - Do managers seek your opinion? If you answered NO to any of these questions, then you have your answer as to why top management will not buy in to your suggestions. As much as corporate branding is important it is time that the HR function becomes a brand of choice. The answer lies in re-branding. Firstly you need to determine your HR departments current reputation and brand. Are you simply seen by employees and management as those people who handle benefits and perform interviews? Do employees and management alike understand and appreciate the role of HR? Do you see yourself as a product and market your services? It is time for a reality check. Be honest about the role that you as HR play in the organisation. After this initial stage, the rebranding strategy can then be implemented to ensure that the HR function is in line with the current organisational needs. The first step in the re-branding strategy is to identify who your primary customers are, who they should be and what their needs are. Are they primarily executive managers, line managers or the entire workforce? Ask yourself what your employees need. Is it a stress-free working environment, career enhancement opportunities, counselling, health wellness programmes, reorientation or performance management for example. What about management, what are their needs? Do they need information on what other organisations are paying in the market, do they need alternatives to traditional medical aid cover that are cost-effective, do they need help with talent acquisition and retention? Only when you ascertain these needs are you as HR able to position yourself accordingly to cater for those needs. The second step is to craft an identity based on customers needs. Products and services have to be tailor-made to meet the real needs of the organisation. For example, in most organisations, some of the greatest needs right now are revenue generation,

monitoring of staff costs and staff retention. HR now has to craft and implement strategies to address these needs. For example, cutting back on unsustainable benefits, keeping optimum staff levels, establishing human resources development programmes to rectify talent gaps and implementing performance appraisals to segment top performers from non-performers and then crafting remuneration packages accordingly. The third step is to update your image as HR. If you want your HR brand to deliver the message of quality service, then ensure that visitors to the department get what they need with no hassle or friction. In other words, you have to walk the talk. The fourth step is to spread the word. Let people know what you are doing by creating a system where you can demonstrate results through a standard and meaningful measurement system. For example, developing special HR development reports. Get people to recognise and acknowledge the work that HR is doing. The key word here being work. If nothing is being done, then nothing can be acknowledged. The last step is to continuously improve. Excellence is not a destination, but is a continuous process. The goal posts have to be constantly shifted and customer needs redefined to suit changing organisational objectives and goals. As a guideline, these are the new roles expected of the HR function over and above what has been traditionally done. Strategic Partner The crafting of organisational strategies does not belong to top management only. As the overseers of the most valuable assets of the organisation, it is only imperative that HR be a part of the process. This is where all the information gathered from seminars, conferences and training comes in handy. Knowing where the organisation is going and how it plans to get there will help HR identify key leverage points where it can impact the business. Employee Advocate Over and above addressing employee grievances, administering benefits and ensuring employee welfare, HR has to now increase employee capability and commitment. Staff retention is now especially difficult with the influx of people to the diaspora. Furthermore, some companies are in such dire financial constraints that they cannot afford to offer competitive remuneration in comparison with both local and international markets. Change Champion A lot of changes are currently occurring in organisations. Employee salary expectations need to, in some instances, come down. A lot of people are finding themselves without the benefits they were accustomed to, other employees need to go on forced leave, while others have to be retrenched and those working find themselves doing more than they had to previously. HR has to guide the organisation through these changes through the implementation of relevant strategies. Understanding the Business HR has to understand the whole organisational business and not just HR. It has to be well versed with whats going on in accounting, sales and production, for example. Financial reports, sales reports, have to be read and understood. There is also need to know the HR business thoroughly, that is, what is happening globally in terms of HR issues, what challenges and strategies other organisations worldwide are implementing as well as economic forecasts regionally and abroad. It is only through a thorough understanding of such issues that HR can take on its role as a strategic partner. The HR function needs rebranding for it to survive in the current economic challenges. There is need to constantly revisit the key outcomes required from the HR function.