The way we work has changed in several ways including the way people apply for jobs and how recruiters screen candidates. Both these tasks were once expected to be done in-person. Now technology allows us to perform both these tasks without interaction between recruiter and a candidate. This is an example of digital transformation, which is slowly pushing HR in the future.
Digital strategy
Technology is pervading all functions of a business. The aim is to make business processes efficient, employees more productive, and deliver better business results. HR leaders who are looking for open space
The world ‘digital transformation’ has been making rounds in the HR community. The term means using technology to positively impact business processes. Therefore, it is important for HR leaders to define a digital strategy more concretely for their organization.
Building a digital strategy
1. Build a business case
Get buy-in from C-suite and senior leaders. It’s necessary for leaders to see how the strategy will benefit their organization. Before crafting a strategy, make sure you have a solid business case to present to leaders. Once they are in, go ahead and start building a strategy.
2. Define goals
Technology is a solution for nearly everything today. However, before you start making plans document the goals that you want to achieve. How will your strategy achieve the goals of the organization?
3. Strategy development
This depends on how HR want their organization to progress. Creating a strategy will work like a map that will help the HR department to take a specific direction and achieve their goals.
4. Find the right tech
Technology is available for all sizes of business. HR leaders need to find the right technology that fits into their culture and infrastructure. It is also important to ensure that technology compliments the strategy.
5. Experiments
The needs vary across organizations. It means there’s no one ‘how-to’ guide you can follow to achieve digital transformation. As an HR leader, you should be ready to experiment all the way to the end. This will improve your skills as well.
6. Develop skills
Implementation of new technology won’t make a difference unless employees learn to use them. A focused approach to learn new skills should be adopted. Failure is a part of experimentation and should be considered a stepping stone toward building new skills.
7. Measure results
Leaders need to constantly track output of the changes made in the organization. This will help understand what’s working and what’s not, and help companies decide the next course of action.
8. Be transparent
While transformation is underway, organizations go through a lot of changes. It is important for leaders to stay open about changes and talk about it.
9. Company culture
Don’t lose focus on company culture. Transformation is a time when culture is put to test. As an HR leader, be aware that as long as processes support and empower employees, HR won’t fail.
Conclusion
Regardless of how robust a digital strategy is; transformations don’t happen overnight. Leadership in HR should be aware that transformation takes time and effort. At the same time, HR technology is still evolving, which requires leaders to revisit their process and refine it. Digital transformation is a prolonged process and it shouldn’t be seen as a one-time deal. Companies need to remain agile and consistently work toward optimizing their processes using technology to see themselves inching toward success.
