HR functions need to successfully play transactional, transitional & transformational roles in managing their workforces to successfully tide over the challenges posed by the business environment

Photo Credit : Shutterstock,

The rapid technology integration across all sectors has led to large-scale disruption and also contributed to the rapidly changing business environment across enterprises.  Additionally, with more than 60 percent of the demography and working-class today consisting of Gen-Z and Millennials who have vastly different emotive, financial and physical preferences, it has added to the complexity of managing the workforce in any organization operating in such an environment.

The volatility, complexity, and ambiguity that has now become the ‘new normal’ across industries haves necessitated that HR strategies be more dynamic than ever before with adaptability to changing conditions being the key to success. Therefore, incorporate India today, HR functions need to successfully play transactional, transitional & transformational roles in managing their workforces to successfully tide over the challenges posed by the business environment.

Let us look at some HR Strategies to help leverage human capital to achieve business success

Understanding your business!

Today, the role of HR in planning and driving strategic business growth is as important as technology or business leadership and for this, it is most important that HR professionals first understand the very business that their organization is involved in. Unless one is clear on the finer nuances and challenges that plague a business, it would be difficult for HR professionals to effectively make decisions relating to recruitment, performance & talent management, learning & development and many more. Therefore, it is implicit that HR leaders constantly develop themselves and use their knowledge to offer inputs on high-level business guidance and leadership in defining the very future of work.

Accelerating the Leadership development process

Due to the pace of changes in modalities in conducting business and external challenges facing the industry, the time required to create ‘leaders’ has significantly reduced and this calls for intensive employee training and grooming to inculcate the ability to deal with a high degree of uncertainty and to resolve challenges within short time frames. This needs championing of critical thinking coupled with business acumen for these leaders and necessitates that organizations restructure internal hierarchies to allow for greater collaboration between employees and the current leadership. Herein lies the challenge that HR needs to address within their organization on an immediate basis.

Achieve Talent Mobility to overcome economic volatility

With the volatility that is now commonplace across industries, the number and quality of employees needed to conduct business and also achieve business growth demand that organizations strike a balance between hiring new talent and reskilling existing employees dynamically. HR needs to effectively analyze the quantum of both the requirements and plan their activities with the foresight of having a capable talent pool ready when the business situation would demand the same. Therefore, success would be defined by the ability to match employees with the right opportunities to enable both personal and organizational growth. This ability to mobilize talent effectively will be key to having a lean but able workforce and the onus of the same lies with HR.

Driving workplace innovation towards Business growth & profitability

Every industry has a set of Best Practices and is a common perception that mastering these would promise competitiveness and sustainability. However, with the ever-increasing number of businesses becoming unviable because of new, disruptive technology-driven business models being introduced, it is imperative that an organization promotes a culture of seeking out ‘Next Practices’ rather than solely relying on what the market leader practices at the current timeframe. HR plays a crucial role here in identifying talent with the zeal for innovation and employing them at strategic roles to spur this innovation mindset across the employee chain. Additionally, devising and driving employee engagement programs to promote this next practice culture would go a long way in ensuring that the organization stays relevant and true to the real market scenario with the ability to respond to disruptive changes in operating conditions at a faster pace.

Facilitating the human and digital collaboration at the workplace

With the plethora of initiatives that are needed to be driven by HR, it would be next to impossible to manage all these without advancing the implementation of digital tools with respect to communication within the organization.  Additionally, driving employee training & engagement initiatives using e-learning platforms is paramount to ensure that the pace of talent up-gradation and knowledge semination is real-time which would not be possible with classroom-based training or batch-size engagement programs. Utilizing such tools would bring about faster changes and foster a stronger bond between the organization and its employees.

To sum it up, HR as a function and as a role needs to have a deeper understanding of the business scenario, strike the right balance in talent acquisition strategies & embrace new technologies towards bringing about a positive change in the way employees perceive an organization and its challenges.  All this together would go a long way in tiding over the challenges posed by today’s business environment as well as the possibilities in the near future. 

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are those of the authors' and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of this publishing house