3 ways to better align HR with your business goals.

According to research, a company’s earnings margin is twice as likely to exceed the median, if its employees understand and are excited about the direction their company is taking.



As a custodian of organisational vision & mission, the onus lies with the HR to steer an organisation to a new high. It’s, therefore, clear that aligning HR programs with business imperatives is no longer a nice to have. From developing the talent pipeline to creating an environment that drives employees to collectively work towards the organizational vision, HR has a significant impact on key business metrics.



According to a study, 51% of companies are linking business impact to HR programs. In addition, 60% believe in holding HR accountable for not just talent, but also business outcomes.

So, how can HR champion a high performance organisation?

HR is expected to do much more than put the right systems, processes, and policies in place by understanding the strategic impact of its initiatives and backing business priorities with the right strategy. Let us look at three ways in which HR can effectively do this:

1. Get the right people on board

The talent and skills shortage issue gets even more challenging in a dynamic business environment where new technologies, competition, and regulations can derail even the strongest business plans.

Add to this the complexity of defining right talent - which varies with changing organisations, job functions and team dynamics.

In such a scenario, recruitment processes must be equipped to deal with these changes by aligning with specific skills sets required across business initiatives. Working with corporate marketing teams and using social media platforms is another way to nurture and strengthen the talent pipeline aligned with the company’s goals.

2. Link learning programs with business KPIs

Investing in Learning and Development (L&D) programs can do much more than improve productivity. Performance and competency-based training fosters a learning culture where employees are encouraged to continuously upgrade their skill sets and knowledge, while contributing to business objectives.

It is important to set business KPIs for learning programs and monitor and measure them on a regular basis. According to a study, 76.1% of organisations link learning objectives to overall performance goals to at least a moderate extent, and 43.5% to a high or very high extent. More than 70% of the companies that aligned learning and business objectives were able to improve overall revenue. Aligning L&D programs with performance management strategies also lays the foundation for effective succession planning, where individual goals can be aligned with organizational goals.

3. Use performance management as a developmental tool

Measuring employee performance has taken on strategic importance and is no longer just seen as a tool to check a few boxes at the end of the year. It is a great way to reinforce core values and align individual performance with the strategies at a business unit and organisational level.

For example, if a company considers ideation and innovation as an important core value, then this could become a critical performance evaluation parameter at an individual, team, and unit level. When performance management is aligned with business, it gives employees a sense of direction and understanding of how their work contributes to larger goals and also how they can grow with the organisation.

Raising the bar: From building talent to building the digital enterprise

With digital trends disrupting organisations inside-out, HR strategies will be instrumental in driving businesses into the digital future. The rise of new disruptive business models as well as multi-generational and hyper connected employees will push business leaders to work with HR - to shape the new identity, culture and organisational capabilities needed to execute a digital strategy. HR, in turn, will have to constantly redefine itself, become decentralised and work with every aspect of business to help build the next-gen digital enterprise.