Following our last business leader luncheon we had a number of enquiries from business owners for further tips on how to leverage their business growth. So we asked each of our panelists to write an article and share with us their thoughts and their client’s experiences.
In the first of these articles, Tracy Morgan, MD of About HR, offers advice and a case study on how to develop and implement a strategy that also measures the alignment of your most important asset, employees, with the strategic direction of your organisation.
“ Businesses owners must carefully analyse their retention strategies.
What people do in jobs and how they do it are more important than ever.
Tracy has also included a white paper that looks at addressing a major issue for Western Sydney businesses with real consequences to the survival of the business sector - managing the labour shortage and implementing effective employee retention strategies.
I recently had the privilege of being a panel member at the WSBC Leading your Organisation lunch, sharing the stage with Daniel Davis (Gallop Solutions) and Greg Travers (William Buck). The event explored the leadership challenges facing businesses working towards leveraging business growth in the Western Sydney region. One challenge the panel discussed was the importance of building an organisational structure that supports business objectives and harnesses competitive advantage.
Business managers and owners are fond of the maxim “Employees are our most important asset”, but is this simply rhetoric or is this view embedded in the organisation? In the increasing shift towards a service based economy, for many companies employees are likely to become the only source of long-term competitive advantage. Most traditional measures of HR performance – such as employee turnover rates, average time to fill; open positions, and total hours of training provided – don’t predict organisational performance. So how can we harness this advantage to maximum impact on
organisational performance?
Perhaps the most critical factor in building a successful and sustainable business is the alignment between organisational strategy, group and individual goals. Employees need to understand organisational goals and, even more importantly, they need to understand the role they play both individually and as part of a team in achieving those goals. It is the role of leaders to communicate organisational goals effectively to employees, and to translate these into group and individual level plans and activity.
“ It is the role of leaders to communicate organisational goals
effectively to employees, and to translate these into
group and individual level plans and activity.
Aligning strategy with employee activity sounds simple enough, however in practice it is a complex challenge. Lack of consistent and clear communication, poor understanding of expectations and uncertainty are often barriers that impede alignment. Unfortunately many businesses view the Human Resources department as a predominantly compliance and administrative function and therefore do not see the need to align its role with the strategic plan. This is a missed opportunity, the irony being that HR is about people, which is the core of an organisation and its strategic plan.
When developing growth strategies, priority is often given to financial and physical resources, however determining the right structure and designing appropriate roles to deliver business goals is equally critical, as is ensuring you have the right people in those roles. In order to grow successfully an organisation needs to evolve and change, it needs to understand its starting point and have a clear vision of its destination. Furthermore, it needs a roadmap for change that enables everyone in the organisation to travel towards the same destination.
How do you know if you have the right structure, roles & people in your organisation to deliver on your strategy? And if that strategy is correct?
In order to understand the starting point and to plan the route towards the desired destination, the use of a business improvement and benchmarking tool may be useful.
About HR recommends the STAR Workplace Program to assess how a business develops and implements its strategy, in addition to measuring the alignment of employees with the strategic direction. The program provides a reality check, and creates a benchmark for ongoing business improvement and employee alignment.
To read a case study from an organisation that has benefited from running the STAR Workplace Program click here, or download your free copy of White Paper - Recognising Great Workplaces
If you wish to have an informal discussion about how you can optimise the role of Human Resources within your organisation please contact Tracy directly via email at tracy@abouthr.com.au
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Author: Tracy Morgan is the Managing Director and Founder of About HR, which works in partnership with business leaders to create and refine people strategies that are clearly aligned with business strategy.
