How Can HR Add Value to the Organization?

Knowing your organization's goals and plans is the first step toward aligning HR's efforts with those goals. HR adds value to an organization by using its programs to implement the organization's goals. Actually, research conducted jointly by the Society for Human Resource Management and CCH Incorporated showed that good HR practices can make a big difference in an organization's bottom line, with higher employee productivity and stronger market performance than competitors too. The best case scenario is for HR to partner with top management so its "people" expertise can influence decisions and its programs can be designed to achieve organization goals. How can HR become a strategic partner? Here's a checklist of steps to take in order to get a "seat at the table":

Change the image of HR. Shift the major focus away from compliance activities by utilizing outsourcing, delegation, and investing in technology.

Walk the talk. Strategically analyze HR. Use the same criteria on the human resources function that is applied to all business functions.

Add value. If it doesn't add value, don't do it. Value is defined as increasing the profitability of the company.

Learn the business. Be a businessperson first and an HR person second.

Be proactive. Don't wait to be anointed a strategic partner. Determine a strategy with goals and begin to work toward those objectives.

Share the vision. Capitalize on a traditional HR strength --communication --to work tirelessly toward the corporate dream.