Play your part in shaping the business

HR is becoming less transactional and more strategic. But are HR Business Partners contributing enough in this new strategic role?

Too often the answer seems to be no. Recent research found fewer than one in five CEOs rate HR as strategically important, and only slightly more rate HR's performance as satisfactory.*

It seems that HR functions are still better at supporting business strategy than creating it - better at managing personnel costs than creating human capital strategy.

So what's the problem? In my view - a lack of the right training. Training and development of HR personnel, including Business Partners, has been neglected. Recent statistics show that only 14% of businesses train their HR staff in key skills. And it's a vicious circle: the smaller the training investment, the less effective Business Partners will be, the less they'll be valued, and so the less money will be allocated to training.

So HRBPs need to make a bigger strategic impact. But with limited training investment? We think one answer is to ditch the generic training that HRBPs usually get. Our development package takes a holistic approach to development. We focus on integrating the skills HRBP's need to make a bigger contribution to their company and its strategy.

We do this not only by teaching skills, but also by encouraging HRBPs to believe in the benefits that HR can bring to business strategy. In the past, Business Partners have undervalued their role and their own potential. But with the right development, they can make as important a contribution as any other member of the senior management team.

Source: Corporate Leadership Council research