Do the HR manager and the business manager in your company move in sync? Too often the two sides operate in parallel but in different directions. The result is a strategic divergence that hinders the company’s development and flexibility.
“Too often I find myself in a situation where business managers and HR managers are not talking the same talk. This sends a clear signal that the company is not on the same page,” said Kristjan Vanaselja, founder of GoWorkaBit.
How to change it? Here are three practical ways to help HR and business management work more smoothly together.
1. Collaboration at all levels, not just in management.
Cooperation between HR and business management is not limited to the management level. It must also extend to frontline managers, teams and even temporary staff.
“A manager and HR manager cannot make good decisions without leaving the office. In order to really understand what is happening in the company, they should go on the floor together from time to time – talk to the employees, get a feel for the working environment and see the processes with their own eyes,” emphasised Kaidi Kask, a long-standing senior executive in retail (Sportland, LPP Estonia, Jysk). She continues: “It is often assumed that managers know exactly what is going on at different levels of the company, but in reality important details can be missed. When the manager and HR manager have a real sense of the working environment, their decision-making power becomes stronger.”
For example, in a logistics company, where warehouse and distribution workers are business-critical, a manager and HR manager could regularly spend one working day a quarter alongside frontline workers. Being involved in the receiving, picking and dispatching of goods can help to spot bottlenecks that are not visible from the office, such as uneven workloads and shift schedules.
As a next step, this collaborative experience should be integrated into the workplace design process. On a quarterly basis, management could review the company’s growth and performance objectives and assess what needs to be done to achieve them, what skills are required and whether current processes support these objectives. This will allow informed decisions to be made on workforce planning and process optimisation.
2. HR strategy and business objectives must be in sync.
In a fast-changing business environment, the HR manager must be a strategic partner, not just a support function. If the HR manager does not know what the business objectives are, he or she cannot adapt HR solutions accordingly.
“If HR managers can demonstrate how a flexible workforce can reduce costs and increase operational efficiency, they can become the most important strategic partner in an organisation,” stressed Kristjan Vanaselja.
“Human resource management cannot be simply a response to orders from the production manager. If the HR manager is involved in the planning of the production process, he or she can provide solutions that support both the production objectives and the development of people,” said Katri Jürine.
For example, in a manufacturing company, where operational efficiency is directly dependent on the availability and skills of the workforce, the production manager and the human resources manager could work closely together to ensure that human resources are not just a reactive resource, but a strategic part of solving business problems.
There are good opportunities to achieve this:
- meet regularly to analyse the development of production processes and potential labour problems before they become critical.
- Together, we map out what skills are needed, not only to fill existing positions but also to increase production efficiency.
- Review work organisation and plan for more flexible solutions, such as the use of temporary staff or internal retraining programmes.
💡 Read more: 4 practical steps: workforce analysis and planning
When HR and the production manager go beyond meeting workforce needs to discuss strategic solutions, it can help optimise work processes, reduce unnecessary costs and increase overall productivity.
3. Open and regular communication
If the HR manager and the business manager don’t share information, it’s difficult to achieve anything together. Regular and open communication can help to avoid misunderstandings and mistakes.
“To succeed, you need open and close communication. HR managers need to understand the needs of the business and managers need to be ready to explain their objectives,” stressed Kristjan Vanaselja.
To ensure better communication within the company, each department could present its key numbers and trends in a simple and easy-to-understand format. This can be achieved by:
- organise monthly cross-functional meetings where departments briefly share their key indicators and main challenges.
- Create a clear visual overview, such as a dashboard or KPI dashboards, that allow all departments to quickly understand how their activities impact the bigger picture.
- Implement short “stand-up” meetings where each team representative shares their priorities and main obstacles, giving the opportunity for other departments to offer support.
- Encourage HR managers to actively participate in business meetings so that they can give their input on work organisation, motivation systems and staff development, rather than just meeting recruitment needs.
Such steps can make the flow of information clearer and help different departments make better informed decisions.
Summary
Coordinating human resources and business management is not just an administrative task – it’s a strategic step to help a company grow and become more competitive. When the HR manager is actively involved in business processes and business unit managers embrace HR management as a partnership, work organisation can be more efficient and employees more motivated.
Successful companies do not treat HR management as a support function, but use it as a tool to improve business performance.
The article was written on the basis of a webinar organised by GoWorkaBit, where Katri Jürine (HR Manager at Thermory, PARE Board Chair), Kaidi Kask (former CEO of Sportland, LPP Estonia, Jysk) and Kristjan Vanaselja (founder of GoWorkaBit, PARE Board Member) participated in the panel discussion. Watch the full conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/WZ6eWhgDGK4