Why Does HR Matter? | The African Exponent.
As your business grows, you will need to add more departments to the group. Over time, the amount of staff you have will mean that you need HR support. There are only so many hours in the day, and you will not have the time to manage everything that goes with HR effectively without either an in-house team or an HR consultancy in place.
But why does HR matter, even to small companies?
Compliance
There is a lot more to growing your organization than hiring and firing and hoping for the best. Your HR department will ensure that you comply with all of the legalities around hiring staff – things like their contracts, hours worked, benefits, and more.
Hiring
Hiring is one of the most costly things a business can do, and HR professionals are great at making this process as smooth as possible. They take the guesswork out of what makes good candidates, how to make the hiring process more efficient, and ensure that the hiring process is completed by offering the position to the right candidate.
Hiring the wrong person by rushing the process is detrimental to your company’s future.
Onboarding
Joining a company is one of the hardest processes that most workers go through. Not only do they need to learn where everything is, but they need to learn where they fit in the office and within the culture of the company.
It’s daunting even for those who have a high level of confidence. Onboarding can be made much easier with an HR profession or consultancy stepping in and implementing a process that ensures both the company and the new employee know what to expect every step of the way.
Training and development
People won’t stay in a role that doesn’t keep their skills sharp and offer them some upward motion. Making sure your staff has plenty of training and development opportunities will mean that your team stays engaged; they have all the skills they need to progress and create great work for your business.
Often training and development shape the company’s future, and the staff that might be interns right now might be managed in the future.
Finances
The HR team will create a realistic compensation structure to ensure that you meet or exceed the wages and salaries paid for the same work elsewhere. This allows you to remain competitive and give fair pay for the work.
HR conducts in-depth studies into expected revenue, insecurity standards, and skills to develop a fair plan.
Benefits
Sometimes it is not about the actual salary; it comes down to the benefits. Are your benefits better than others? What can you offer that supports the worker in their life outside of just cash? Attracting and retaining talent is a competitive thing; without more than cash on the table, highly talented workers can (and should) go elsewhere.
HR plays one of the most important roles within your business. If you need more tips, check out this post: 10 Tips for Successful HR Management.