{"id":7366,"date":"2024-04-03T08:26:59","date_gmt":"2024-04-03T08:26:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emn.org.uk\/?p=7366"},"modified":"2024-04-03T08:26:59","modified_gmt":"2024-04-03T08:26:59","slug":"harnessing-hr-to-unlock-competitive-advantage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emn.org.uk\/2024\/04\/03\/harnessing-hr-to-unlock-competitive-advantage\/","title":{"rendered":"Harnessing HR to unlock competitive advantage"},"content":{"rendered":"

www.jacksonhogg.com<\/a><\/p>\n

@JacksonHoggRec<\/a><\/p>\n

The commercial world is a sea of abbreviations.<\/p>\n

And as technology and culture continue to change, so too is the depth of shopfloor shorthand growing further cavernous.<\/p>\n

Among the countless fresh waves, though, an altogether more familiar acronym continues to lap the shoreline \u2013 HR.<\/p>\n

Habitually maligned and oft misunderstood, the two letters, for many organisations, have long been regarded a necessary evil, a begrudging additional cost to already straining budgets.<\/p>\n

But to take such an approach, says Lauren Bathan, an associate director at specialist recruitment and outsourced talent services partner Jackson Hogg, is to adopt a short-term view.<\/p>\n

Instead, by actively embracing HR, and allowing a thorough strategy to wash over a wider operational blueprint, she says firms not only gain greater marketplace traction but lay the foundations for longer term success.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cHR is an untapped resource when it comes to businesses creating and sustaining a competitive advantage.<\/p>\n

\u201cStrong HR and organisational practices allow companies to focus more intently on their objectives, be they innovation, efficiency, quality or growth, for example.<\/p>\n

\u201cA good HR programme fosters an environment where human capital is allowed to thrive, and delivers outcomes a firm\u2019s competitors can neither achieve as quickly nor easily copy.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd, as we saw with the pandemic, it also means valuable safety nets are in place to help contend with the unexpected.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fundamental to understanding such, says Lauren \u2013 who heads Jackson Hogg\u2019s flagship HR Partnership<\/p>\n

service that delivers tailored support to catalyse client growth, nurture talent streams and empower positive cultures \u2013 is to look beyond the profession\u2019s outdated stereotypes.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cHR still carries perceptions of someone sitting in a musty old room, tapping out contracts and sending people dismissal letters.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it is far from that; HR doesn\u2019t exist in a vacuum and it isn\u2019t a back office function.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is professional, specialist support, much like that from a Chartered accountant or procurement expert, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

And to maximise its impact, Lauren says HR policy must be wholly incorporated into an organisation\u2019s overarching strategy, rather than being seen as an administrative outlier.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cOrganisations often fail to connect business strategy with HR strategy.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeaders know how to explain the former, but can sometimes struggle to explain what is required of their people.\u201d<\/p>\n

And drawing the two more closely together, she says, is particularly imperative in the post-pandemic era of greater employee empowerment.<\/p>\n

Lauren says: \u201cIt is more important than ever for companies to make true and authentic people investments.<\/p>\n

\u201cA business must value its people as a key strategic priority and capability.<\/p>\n

\u201cPresent-day employees expect to be reflected in how a business operates, rather than being an afterthought.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat means an organisation must have structures that not only understand modern people practices but harness them too.<\/p>\n

\u201cBringing HR teams to the table \u2013 and including them in strategy decisions \u2013 is integral to ensuring that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we are seeing approaches change,\u201d adds Lauren, who has helped numerous Jackson Hogg clients across the science, manufacturing, engineering and technology sectors strengthen HR frameworks.<\/p>\n

She says: \u201cIncreasingly, firms are taking less of a mechanistic view of people and are instead seeing them as autonomous agents \u2013 a core competence, rather than a cog \u2013 that can make a real difference. \u201cAnd a strong HR structure will only enhance that. \u201cFor example, a business might want to be<\/p>\n

innovative, but that requires people with ideas. \u201cThat itself requires the creation of a culture that<\/p>\n

enables people to feel safe and free to try new things and, on occasions, make mistakes.<\/p>\n

\u201cFurthermore, being able to look at the knowledge, skills and behaviours of the future, and map out appropriate action, is crucial to business growth \u2013 and HR enables that.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor example, if technological changes mean a business is going to need different skills, HR can support moves to grow in-house talent if there isn\u2019t a candidate surplus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lauren adds: \u201cThere will be organisations that have enjoyed a degree of success over recent years, and therefore believe their current HR processes are working fine.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if a business isn\u2019t focusing on its people, then it will eventually feel the cost.<\/p>\n

\u201cHR isn\u2019t simply about hiring and firing; it is an active approach towards pre-empting tomorrow\u2019s challenges right now.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd any business that doesn\u2019t see it as that is unlocking the door for competitors to use the potential of its people for their benefit.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

www.jacksonhogg.com @JacksonHoggRec The commercial world is a sea of abbreviations. And as technology and culture continue to change, so too is the depth of shopfloor shorthand growing further cavernous. 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