The raison d’etre of any firm is to sell its products and services in a profitable manner. The C-suite and the HR team need to be in it together and people are a key to this objective. Therefore HR has a vital role in contributing to a company’s strategic direction and positively impacting the bottom line. This involves not only finding the right people, but keeping the right people, developing the right skills and identifying future leaders.
There are a number of key ways that the HR team can engage effectively with the C-suite, ultimately making the company a better place to work for employees, but also to enhance general company performance.
- Take them actionable data – The HR team has access to a considerable amount of data on a company’s workforce, however many HR departments are still misinterpreting or misusing the data that they have. Present an executive team with data that’s applicable to them, data that they will understand and that they can use to make effective and strategic business decisions.
- Keep up to date on the latest compliance – It’s important to stay on top of ever changing laws and regulations in people management, whether a larger or smaller business. By relaying this information to the C-suite well in advance of changes being made means there is plenty of time to put a plan in place, educate and train the leaders, and avoid the potential exposure and risk of being behind the curve.
- Be strategic rather than just tactical – While tactical HR activities like recruiting, onboarding and skills development are certainly vital, there is a need now, more than ever before for HR to think more strategically. This allows HR to think about talent across the board and the potential implications of that. This includes foreseeing future risks and planning how these would be handled, as well as ensuring the company has the right mix of employees, in the right roles, with the right skillset to ensure the future longevity of the company.
- Think global, act local – Organisations have become more global than ever before, so companies need to offer employees and prospects a consistent global offering with local adaptations. This includes having to navigate more and more regulatory and labour requirements and laws. Hiring talented people across multiple markets in different languages has become more difficult, but more integral to modern day businesses. If HR teams can highlight their expertise in navigating these murky compliance waters, they can demonstrate their value to the C-suite.
- Plan ahead – The key role of any good HR team is to build for the future and to develop the next generation of talent. With recent research by Deloitte finding that talent management and leadership development are key issues for business leaders at present, this is a key area where HR can step in and help release the burden. HR needs to assist in balancing individual and organisational needs when building for the future, with employees understanding not only what’s required from them, but also what’s in it for them.
The HR department and the C-suite have a shared purpose in terms of driving the business forward. Recent research by Oracle has found that 80 per cent of CEOs and CFOs want a company’s head of HR to be involved in the company’s strategic planning at the highest level. With a combination of a clear plan, a global mindset, key facts and workforce analysis, HR can ensure that it is speaking the same language as the C-suite to ensure that the ultimate outcome of any HR policy presented is success.
