How to reduce the HR functions cost

How to reduce the HR functions cost

In a challenging economic scenario, it is imperative to reduce costs while increasing employee productivity. To achieve these basic goals HR must revisit its policies make changes whenever and wherever possible. However, before examining other departments and functions they must try and identify the ways and means as for how to reduce the HR functions cost?

HR professionals can strategies in multiple ways to cut HR costs before it becomes an issue. The same can be attained without sacrificing employee satisfaction or threatening any employee retention. Below mentioned are some successful strategies to cut HR functions cost and while improving employee productivity.

Risk Management:

Minimize risk by human resources outsourcing. There are several firms those who perform outsourced work.  The ever-changing employment and labor laws can make things difficult for employers to remain up-to-date on regulations that affect the workplace. Outsourcing firms employ HR professionals whose purpose is to stay abreast of numerous central and state employment laws. HR firms maintain and audit company policies and practices to ensure the organization and its employee's best interests remain protected.

Hire & Retain Top performers:

High employee turnover can result in considerable costs and loss of productivity. This also saves cost involved in training. Statistics reveal an employer loses about six days of productivity due to attrition of a tenured employee. To avoid high turnover without increasing costs significantly, conduct periodical evaluations of every staff performing HR activity.

Improve Training And Mentoring:

Appropriate training and mentoring is the key to reducing costs in HR functions. Appointing a supervisor with poor knowledge can cause internal conflicts within the HR team and within the organization. HR supervisors need to train its staff so that they understand every finer nuance of the organization and organizational policies right from hiring to training and mentoring.

Process Automation:

Process automation is one of the best ways to cut costs. Automating manual processes, like providing an employee portal can help streamline processes related to employee requests. Digitizing documents such as employee handbooks can eliminate copying costs and make distribution easier. Such modern human resources strategies can truly help.

Process Outsourcing:

Several organizations have moved some in-house HR functions to an external service provider. This helps in cutting costs of HR functions drastically. Most of the HR related and operational expenses are saved by outsourcing few HR functions. 

10 Leadership Skills in Human Resource Management

10 Leadership Skills in Human Resource Management

Human resource professionals must inculcate the habit of leading from the front. They could be involved in multi-disciplinary roles in an organization. To attain maximum growth and successful human resource professionals must tap the intrinsic skill of each employee. Human resource managers must be champions in recruiting the right resource, planning, and coordination, supervision, and handling staff issues. They should also possess ancillary skills like developing training modules, learning and development modules must be champions of performance management, change management, and employee management.

Below mentioned are the top 10 mandatory leadership skills essential for driving organizational success.

1. Ability to Lead:

A leadership skill that is must for every HR professional is the ability to lead. An HR leader should set his vision and share it with employees that will inspire and bring the best out of them. An HR leader should motivate his employees to attain the organizational objective. He / She should instill faith among employees that if they achieve their goals they will be rewarded. The employees should be motivated enough to have a sense of purpose.

2. Effective Communication

All HR leaders are good communicators. They must understand how to get their point across. They must explain the company’s vision to their employees; explain tasks and how it is to be done. He / She must facilitate office communications and conversations. HR Leaders must also be able to communicate a job requirement before someone is hired and explain the reasons in case someone is fired.

3. Performance Management:

Performance management is the ability to manage and ensure that goals are consistently being met in an effective and efficient manner. In the context of an HR leader performance management is to focus on the performance of an organization, every department and each and every employee. It is basically the process by which HR leaders, managers, and employees work together to plan, monitor and review an employee’s work objectives and overall contribution to the organization. 

4. Adapt Change Management:

A leader should always be prepared for change and manage them to achieve continuous improvement Change management is the adaptation of tools and techniques to manage the people side of change and to achieve the required result. Change management incorporates organizational tools that can be utilized to help employees make successful transitions resulting in the adoption and realization of change.

5. Recruitment & Selection of Employees:

Recruitment & Selection is one of the core functions of any HR Leader. From the management stand point a HR leader should formulate an effective recruitment strategy. It plays an integral role in the success of any organization. Mapping open positions to an appropriate pool of potential candidates with the desired knowledge, skills and experience will certainly allow an organization to flourish.

6. Conflict Management:

 The role of a HR leader is critical to ensuring everything goes well within the organization. A HR leader is required to shield the company from the potential liability that comes with unprofessional behavior and allegations. There should be no discrimination or harassment and leader must mediate disagreements between colleagues. Apprehending to situations in black and white is an integral part of conflict management.

7. Program Development & Implementation:

 HR leaders must design the frameworks for learning and development. They must formulate a core team to collaborate and design programs for the betterment of the company. An HR lead must initiate and execute training programs, leadership programs, wellness programs and compensation programs through launch and beyond.

8. Time Management:

Time Management is one the most critical aspect for every HR leaders, though it is important for everybody. Great HR leaders not only have to manage their own time but will have to manage an entire organization’s time and efforts. Time management skills help understanding how employees spend their time, how each department should spend its time and on what objectives each department should spend its time on.

9. Problem Solving:

All HR leaders must possess problem-solving skills. There could be a problem in a team or with the company HR leaders must lead from the front on such occasions. An HR leader must come forward to solve a particular problem for their clients, employees and all other stakeholders of the organization.

10.  Organizational Development:

HR leaders must display Organizational Development skills. They must assess and identify an employee’s strengths and weaknesses and devise a plan to nurture and expand their skills. It is the duty of HR lead to strengthening individuals those who make up a company. The organization as a whole can be transformed into an innovative force by evaluating staff on a continuous basis and providing ample opportunity to learn new ideas.