Why HR and people are critical to your business success

HR is essential to your organisation’s success; leveraging it to its full potential can impact your business in a positive way. Here, Kerry White, Executive Search lead at Macmillan Davies gives you five key reasons why an effective and efficient HR team can help accelerate business growth.

1. Driving business strategy

A strong HR function can advise and support the CEO in strategic planning and resource allocation. CEOs need a HR lead who understands the company vision and what talent resources are required to get there quickly. By aligning HR initiatives with the business strategy, companies can ensure that they have the right people, with the right skills, in the right roles, to achieve their goals.

2. Improve organisational performance

Improving organisational performance is essential for achieving goals and increasing efficiency, as well as directly impacting the bottom line. The HR function plays a vital role in driving this performance by managing and motivating employees, creating systems and processes to measure and improve performance and providing development opportunities.

3. Attracting and retaining top talent

The age-old saying that “a company is only as good as its people” is beginning to play a more significant role in the development of growth strategies. We know attracting and retaining top talent is essential for the growth and success of any business. A study by BCG in 2014 found that organisations with a strong talent recruiting strategy saw 3.5 times the revenue growth than those without. Research by Gallup has found that there is a link between employee engagement and business performance by analysing things like turnover. A strong HR leader will market the company in a way that attracts the best talent in the industry. Recruiting is a continuous sales process, and top HR professionals will embrace it and add value.

4. A focus on performance, not just people

The last few years have shown that people-related issues are anything but soft. HR professionals have increased their influence by clarifying the links between people and organisation’s performance. While the connections between people and performance may seem obvious, the investment in people-related solutions, technology and strategies may require strong business cases—which HR professionals are best-positioned to make to the CEO.

Data by Accenture found the most effective CHROs had greater skills in both financial acumen and business acumen—showing the need to be deeply knowledgeable about the business and the investments that result in the greatest returns.

5. Building a positive workplace culture

According to a study by Gallup, organisations with high employee engagement have 23% higher profitability. Our latest HR Insights survey attested to the importance of workplace culture with a positive and dynamic company culture seen as critical and the reason for remaining in a current role, reinforcing their value and importance to maximising staff retention. The HR function plays a crucial role in creating and maintaining a positive and engaging workplace culture.

A positive culture has been shown to increase productivity, reduce absenteeism, as well as improving staff morale. It can also have a positive impact on turnover and improve customer satisfaction. If businesses foster a culture of mutual respect, trust, and inclusivity, employees will feel valued and motivated to contribute to the best of their abilities. A positive culture benefits existing staff but also ensures the company is attractive for top talent – an essential for long-term success.

Get in touch

Should you wish to have a confidential chat with Kerry White to discuss the HR requirements in your business market or your search for work/recruiting into your team, please contact her directly at kwhite@mdhr.co.uk

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