HR and the Current Climate

How can HR advice and support help you meet the challenges of the current market conditions?

You can only change what you can influence.  Many of us will have little opportunity to have a direct and immediate effect on the current economic and political factors that we read, hear and see in the media.  We can change how our business reacts to those trends on a number of levels.  In terms of people, you can adopt one of a number of strategies which will help you to make respond to current challenges and retain a core functions which are key to longer term development of the business.

Strategies can include one or all of the following

• Refocus - is the business focused on what matters and what is going to make a difference?  If the externals have changed, has the internal focus been adjusted to compensate.  Are teams working together?  Do roles and responsibilities need to be refocused?  Are the right measurements and performance targets in place?  Is the internal communication strong, relevant and meaningful?
• Restructure - are the internal lines of reporting robust enough?  Do you have the right set of skills and competences in the business?  Do you need to make changes to the structure?
• Retain -  can you hold onto top performers when market conditions may not allow you to reward as generously as previously?  Can you keep core staff when they are feeling insecure and unsettled?  Is the grass looking greener elsewhere?  What is the long term effect of losing key staff?
• Reduce - you may have to bite the bullet and make redundancies or staff reductions?  If you do, you have to follow due process to prevent litigation (for example unfair selection for redundancy); you must mitigate the effect this has on fellow employees; and manage the message that this gives to your clients and customers.

The key to choosing the right strategy

• Be clear about the desired outcome - where do you want to be?
• Consider all the options
• Work through all the consequences of the options
• Get commitment to final decison
• Implement with compassion and care
• Get the process right
• Evaluate and learn

The Gravitate HR team can help you through this process by being an independent facilitator of the strategy discussion, can implement in partnership with you and will advise on the appropriate processes and procedures.  We can add value to your management decision making and implementation to find an early solution to the challenges that you are currently facing.