Strategic Thinking for HR Professionals

There are two broad orientations about what the focus of Human Resource Professionals needs to be in organisations. One orientation focuses on the soft side – employee engagement, wellness, satisfaction, even happiness. The emphasis is on the ‘Human’ side of things, not the ‘Resources’. The argument is that these things are of value , and ultimately translate to making the organiszation a great place to work, and helps to achieve its objectives. However,  there is often no clear line of sight between these activities and the organisation’s ability to achieve its objectives. The other orientation ostensibly focuses on the ‘bottom-line.’ The emphasis is on the ‘resources’, not the ‘human’. This group theoretically tends to use every metric in the book in the strictest terms to measure performance, is probably closer to the top team in the organisation and is not into TGIFs or any such ‘frivolous’ activities.

The focus, however, needs to be on both terms – human resources – simultaneously for organisations to truly thrive for the long term. There must be an alignment between human resources and the organisation’s strategic objectives.