The first critical element in developing a strategic HR function is whether business or industry experts believe that understanding the social and psychological aspects of people is necessary for effective leadership. Do they believe in the power of multidisciplinarity? If a company is convinced that industry knowledge is the only true and legitimate form, then it will not be open to more humanistic approaches.
This relates to the beliefs of management, owners, and the organizational culture. Does leadership believe that, as thirty years ago, one can set up a company, establish processes, and then let it run itself? Does management think that creating added value is linear and simple (just hire experts who bring their knowledge to produce results)? If the answers to these questions are “yes,” then HR is unlikely to assume a strategic role.
What does the modern age need and expect from HR?
In answering this question, I draw on the challenges we see around the world and current trends in HR. I highlight six key competencies or attributes:
1 High ethical standards and regulating the organization accordingly– HR as an active protector against a toxic environment
With this competence, HR must act in two roles. First, it must actively promote and build a psychologically safe and healthy organizational environment. Secondly, it must prevent activities and behaviors that create a toxic environment. This includes preventing destructive behaviors (mocking, humiliation, undermining, aggression, gossip). It also includes preventing discrimination, subjective treatment of applicants in the selection process, nepotism and the like.
2 Personal flexibility, mental resilience and a high degree of adaptability to change
Why are we talking about these qualities? The last year has clearly shown us how unpredictable our environment is. Change is unstoppable and will only get faster. We can no longer wait for the changes to stop, nor can we resist them. They come back like a boomerang. To cope with uncertainty, we need these personal qualities more than ever.
3 The artist with the DNA of a project manager
Half joking, half serious. It is important to look at the “big picture” and recognize patterns throughout the organization. When we see how things are connected, it is important to be creative and be able to develop strategies, goals and activities that respond to the recognized needs of the “big picture”. We must not lock ourselves in our office, look at the HR areas and write down a few activities. These can be very professional, but if they do not relate to the organizational challenges and organizational strategy, then we are missing the mark. Let us say we need the mind of an artist who sees beyond the obvious. Of course, that is not nearly enough. In the following steps, skills for planning activities, monitoring and drawing conclusions are important, which require more analytical skills.
4 Ability to effectively build relationships with internal and external stakeholders
To effectively build relationships within the organization, we need a whole range of soft skills. Certainly active listening and the ability to tune into the content of the conversation are important. You need to be able to engage in authentic two-way contact with another person. This skill can be useful when dealing with management and executives as well as with applicants, who will certainly remember their experience with us (and also with the organization).
Another important approach in this context is to look for “win-win” situations in relationships and interactions with others. This way, we all win in the long run. Situations and challenges should not be viewed too “locally” (just to solve this problem, regardless of the consequences), but we must always keep the “big picture” in mind and think sustainably.
5 Ability to connect different levels of the organization with the aim of creating knowledge
Given the challenges we face today and will continue to face in the future (e.g. working with four very different generations), we need to start thinking multidimensionally. To successfully overcome these challenges, we need to create channels, synergies, spaces and meeting points more intensively than ever before. With their help, different individuals, locations and ways of working will continue to come into contact with each other and create new knowledge. Promoting the circulation and transfer of tacit and explicit knowledge is difficult even under stable conditions, let alone the current circumstances. For this reason, we need skills:
- awareness of these challenges,
- the understanding that synergies need to be stimulated and built,
- the courage and creativity to forge channels that generate added value and new knowledge.
6 Ability to think critically
I remember a lecture in college where the professor taught us critical thinking. She explained to us how we should look critically at the social construction of reality. I followed her completely and had my 100% attention until I was sobered by her statement: “Critical thinking also means that you doubt me, who at this moment presented this theory to you.” That moment has stayed with me forever.
No matter how much something captivates me, how much sense it makes to me, how much I believe in it, I reserve a bit of skepticism to remain open to other possibilities. This competence seems to me to be very important in human resources. It keeps us on track, keeps us in touch with the needs of our stakeholders and we are not anchored in our thinking. We are able to receive feedback and change based on it.
