HR strategy vs business strategy
In this video, we're diving into the battle of priorities, the alignment of goals, and the delicate dance between HR's people-focused approach and the profit-driven mindset of business strategy.
HR is a cost to the business, so has to help the business grow
Understand the levers that the business operates on
Help the business to do that
HR operates in tandem
Biggest asset to a company is the people
Activate the people to grow the business
So how do you link your business strategy with your people strategy? Without it, it's one dimensional. So in this video, I'm going to explain the
difference between a business strategy and a people strategy,
and how you bring the two together.
Hi, welcome to the Let's Talk Talent channel where we discuss the world of HR and talent management. We're here to help you unlock the potential in your people.
Are you bored of the word strategy? I kind of am. But They're really important in the world of work. A strategy is just simply a plan of how you're going to get from A to B, and thinking about the risks, the
derailers, the consequences that might happen along that journey.
It's a bit like managing a career, to be honest with you. It's the journey, not the destination.
And your strategy will change fundamentally. So don't think about your strategy in five year terms, because that doesn't really exist anymore.
Think about it in year, or two year, chunks, because then you've got the opportunity to pivot and change.
So why do I think it's important that you link your people or your HR
strategy to your business strategy? Well, basically, your business strategy is why you exist, as an HR team. Ultimately, we're a cost to the business as HR. If you don't understand the new markets, areas, products, services,
customers that your business strategy is serving, then you can't have, and you can't activate, the people. You can't get, keep and grow brilliant people if you don't understand those fundamental questions.
So how do you get to understand your business strategy? Well, for me, this is all about discovery. This is about asking questions. This is about sitting
with your CEO, your board, your leadership team, and understanding and thinking "future back" what's going to be different. So ask some tough questions. What are the KPIs that you're going to be measuring against? How does that link to people and make sure that the two go hand-in-hand,
because if you don't have the people – your people are your biggest asset, they're an overhead to the business – you cannot harness and you can't activate any type of creativity, new thinking, high performance, whatever term you want to use.
So start when you're building your people strategy from a
"business first" perspective, but then think about your customer. Think about your internal customer, but also think about your external customer. Do you understand them? But your external customer could actually be some of your future talent. So whenever you're creating a people
strategy, think "business first". Work with your HR team, and really constantly think about how you're evaluating the success of it. What are the outputs, so the hard KPIs, but also think about the more cultural pieces in terms of the outcomes. Because that's what your CEO, your board, your
leadership team should be thinking about. And you as the Chief People Officer have a unique role. You're like the conductor in the orchestra. You're not telling the first violins, so your Director of Marketing or your Chief Technology Officer, how to do their job, but you're creating
the environment, the culture, for people to thrive and to give
their best performance.
So whenever you ask the question to create your people strategy, think "business first". You can't go wrong.
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