A recent blog post on LinkedIn, which questioned the need for HR departments in today’s business world, generated significant controversy and heated debate within the HR community. A follow-up article by Josh Bersin has responded by arguing that HR departments are still crucial to organisations.
Josh points to research undertaken by The Conference Board and Deloitte that states that the top priorities of CEOs are talent management and the value of human capital. He suggests that business success is being hampered by an inability to recruit and grow leaders alongside skills shortages – and that the only way these problems can be addressed is via expert HR professionals who can work strategically with other senior executives.
HR and business performance
The article provides a few examples of cases where HR practice transformed businesses for the better. In one insurance company, revamped strategies on compensation, talent mobility and employer branding resulted in reduced staff turnover levels and a share price three times greater than it was four years previously. A telecommunications firm changed its staff evaluation system and leadership programmes to attract better engineering talent. By using social media to share knowledge and videos alongside recognition programmes, the company has seen its shares outperform those of comparable organisations by at least 50% in a year. Finally, a manufacturer introduced a learning culture that has retrained employees throughout the organisation and is now viewed as a ‘Growth Play’ by Wall Street.
These are American examples but the principles apply elsewhere. Josh argues that he comes across dynamic and inventive HR strategies all the time in his work. While he acknowledges that HR could improve in terms of being strategic and more efficient, his opinion is firm in that HR is essential in today’s world of talent shortages.
You can read the full article here: Why We Do Need The HR Department
