The importance of HR plans in an organisation cannot be stressed enough. Most organisations today understand the value of and need for a strategic HR plan. But just recognising the value of something and wanting it isn’t enough.
Building a human resource plan requires proper planning, diligence and foresight. Even with a competent HR team in place, an organisation is bound to face challenges when developing an HR strategy.
Here are some reasons why most HR strategies fail. Avoid these situations to ensure successful implementation of your Human Resource strategy and business growth.
Not having the “WHY” figured out
It might be hard to believe but many organisations develop an HR plan simply because all successful organisations have one. That’s it. There are no clear linkages to the corporate objectives of the organisation, how the defined objectives and goals in the HR strategy link to these and why the company is developing specific HR initiatives to drive some or all objectives and how are they going to benefit the employees and organisation itself.
To make sure the purpose of HR plan you develop doesn’t get lost in the process, it needs to clearly draw together these key linkages and demonstrate how it can really make a difference and benefit both the company and its employees.
At the end of the day, its not ‘HR’s’ plan its the businesses plan for creating and sustaining its people to do what it needs them to in order to deliver on its mission and corporate objectives.
There’s no plan behind the initiative
Another often overlooked aspect of an HR plan is the “how” of it. Having an HR strategy that lacks a robust plan explaining how you are going to do things is as likely to fail as an HR strategy without proper linkages to the business strategy and objectives or a meaningful role in the employment framework of a business.
There are companies that come up with HR plans full of standard principles and ideas like “we want to deliver the highest level of customer satisfaction” or “we want to be the best in the region”. These plans are just about high-level goals and aren’t helpful in terms of implementation at the tactical and operational levels of the business.
The key is to know both the “why” and the “how” of the plan.
Lack of communication
The worst case of HR strategy failure can be when there’s clarity in planning, concept, purpose and execution but there’s also a major communication gap. There’s no point in developing a strategic human resource plan with defined objectives and initiatives to be taken to meet those objectives, if you don’t communicate it properly, consistently and regularly to the business.
For an HR plan to work out successfully, it is important to effectively communicate the key components of the plan and how they will support the organisation in varied operations and meeting business goals.
Lack of sustainability
Almost every plan starts off with a bang, but it is not uncommon for many big plans to fizzle out soon after their launch. This often happens because the HR professionals and employees eventually lose interest and enthusiasm due to changes in workload, responsibilities or other company circumstances. It also can happen because its not actively monitored, progress again plan analysed and the results (or lack of them) reported to the Executive team for consideration and action.
To avoid the situation, be sure to consider the long-term impacts of the plan and how its gong to be measured, monitored, analysed and managed.
Think about change management issues and project risk
No matter how efficient your planning, implementing an HR plan without thinking over the change management implications and risks can (will!) increase the chances of plan failure. If it’s the first HR strategy or a new version of it, the change implementation issues need to be identified, considered and addressed. While you can’t always foresee everything that could arise in the future, you can still forecast and take into account some things that might impact in the future and that need to be managed now.
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