s1jobs is about finding the right talent for the right post, but we know that the route into a particular sector isn’t always clear. With this in mind, we’ve been speaking to professionals in a variety of roles in Scotland, in order to get an insider’s perspective. This week, it’s the turn of the HR industry (human resources) to come under the spotlight.
Name: Colin McAndrew
Occupation: HR Consultant
Company: COL HR Ltd
Location: Scotland
What skills and qualifications would help you to secure a HR job?
Being successful in HR has a lot to do with the type of person you are, as well as the qualifications. You need to be able to think on your feet and have the ability to make decisions, sometimes with very little time to do so. More than just a person who learns policies and regurgitates them when asked, you need to be an expert in HR and have in-depth knowledge of what your company does, how they do it and the commercial aspects involved.
People will look to you for guidance, so you need to be credible, seen as a role model and someone who can be trusted by both managers and employees. A valuable HR professional is someone who has the courage and assertiveness to challenge others, often in difficult circumstances but has the ability to gain respect and co-operation at the same time.
There’s nothing easy about working in HR, so those people who are interested in a career in HR need to consider that. Ultimately, it can be very satisfying, provided that the company you work for is committed to HR across the board. The main qualifications that employers seek are CIPD certificates and membership. These are readily available to pursue in a variety of formats now, such as evening Classes, home study, and work-based assessment and group participation.
How important is previous experience in HR to work in the industry?
Previous experience is always beneficial; however, I have seen people move from other sectors and do very well in HR. As long as they can display the essential skills and competencies required for working in HR, then they should not be discouraged. Essentially, I feel that someone who wants to pursue a career in HR should have respect for what it contributes and the ways it can benefit a company. A lot of people miss those elements through lack of understanding.
Defining a HR strategy is a big responsibility. Where do you start?
Defining a HR strategy starts with looking at what the business wants to achieve. HR is only effective if it is aligned with the strategic goals of the company.
One of the starting points is to challenge the current HR policies, systems and processes, looking at what is working well, what can be done better, benchmarking against best practice and looking at external standards. In other words – what are other companies doing well?
When looking at the existing HR function, assess whether this is currently meeting the needs of the business and whether it will ensure the business achieves the desired goals. What do the internal customers need and what do they think about the support they receive from HR? This data is invaluable and can be gained via methods like surveys and focus groups.
It is critical to establish the priorities for the business, translate them to HR initiatives and then agree upon how the success of the initiatives should be measured. In addition, communication of the HR strategy to the wider audience within the business is vital, especially in terms of how the strategy will be communicated, how often and the content of the communications.
When leading any HR strategy, it is important to assess the skills and competence of the HR team. Do the members have the required skills, knowledge and experience to execute the deliverables that contribute to the overall strategy? You may need to consider training and – depending on the timescales involved – engage a consultant or contract HR professional to support the existing team. Aside from the competence of the HR team, you may need to consider whether they have the capacity to tackle new initiatives. Do they have ideas on how to increase efficiency within the team? Do they fully understand their roles in the execution of the strategy?
Evaluation is also a very important aspect of delivering HR strategy. It’s something that needs to be done before, during and after the execution. You need to evaluate progress, which may then require a change to the priorities, potentially leading to other changes such as resources, project plans, timescales and budget.
What is the best way to train employees?
Training is an essential element of running a successful business. Every employee in your company should be trained or developed in some way; nobody is the finished article because we learn every day. We learn new skills, new ways of working, new ideas and perspectives.
You will always want to recruit the best people – the candidates that demonstrate the required skills and behaviours, share your passion for the business goals and believe in the success of the company. However, if your best people aren’t growing in their careers as your business gains traction and expands, they will quickly lose enthusiasm for their work. And before you know it, you’ll be dealing with unsatisfied customers as well as unsatisfied employees.
A company who trains and develops their employees has a competitive advantage, in my opinion.
When looking at the types of training you offer for employees, try to start with establishing a desired level of competence, meaning the skills you think are essential for an employee to be successful in their role. Through evaluating performance regularly and keeping communications open, you can then identify gaps or developmental needs of employees and invest in the appropriate training, whether this is on the job training, in-house training or some form of external certification/qualification.
Employee welfare is important. How does a human resources director keep everyone happy in the workplace?
I don’t think it is possible to keep every single employee content but there are certain things we can do to try and keep the majority of employees happy. Everyone knows a happy employee is a productive employee.
I think it was Ralph Waldo Emerson who said, “Trust men and they will be true to you, treat them greatly and they will show themselves great”. There is significant logic in that.
Keeping employees happy doesn’t have to be over-complicated: using some common sense and practical techniques can go a long way. Do your employees feel respected? Do they feel that their voices are being heard and do they see any results if their voice is heard? It’s also a lot to do with trust. Do your employees trust the company, have you earned that trust and if not, why not? From my experience, it’s a simple case of not making any promises that you can’t keep.
Look at how you engage with your employees. Do you practice open communication? For example, does your business take the time to ensure all employees are given the bigger picture, the goals and direction of the business? Do employees get face time with their managers or is it simply a blanket e-mail that is quickly lost in the ever-growing inbox?
Employees like to know that they are growing and that their career is progressing. There’s something very satisfying about simply recognising success. Recognition doesn’t always need to be financial, being told that you are doing a good job is something that is seriously missing in today’s business culture. The concept of setting clear goals and then providing feedback on how an employee has performed seems lost on people, yet it is relatively straight forward.
It’s all about making the time to show interest in employees. Communicate well, give personal attention, recognise success, offer development opportunities, try to be flexible and earn the trust of your employees.
Have you ever had to resolve a conflict in the workplace? How did you do this, and how can you prevent future conflicts from arising?
Resolving conflict is a big part of a HR Professional’s role and is something I have had to do throughout my career.
Conflict can occur in various forms: some can be a simple difference of opinion and others can be very serious issues that require a lot more time and effort to resolve.
I fully believe that by educating people, we can impact on future behaviour. What I mean is that by outlining the acceptable behaviours and conduct in the workplace, you set the rules on how people should interact with each other. Clear, easy to use HR policies and procedures such as Grievance and Disciplinary are essential as part of this education.
The education should not only go to employees but managers too. Employees should be educated on the best way to raise a concern or make a complaint, before the situation gets out of hand. Managers should be coached and trained on their responsibilities in dealing with conflicts in the workplace.
The more we educate our employees on, the less they will make up for themselves.
What would you say to someone who was considering a career in HR?
I would suggest that they speak to someone who works in HR and spend some time with them to get to know the challenges they face in their job. That’s what I did. I approached a friend of my father’s who was a senior HR Manager and asked him for his advice. That seems a long time ago and some of what he told me at the time isn’t relevant now but it did open my eyes to the type of work a HR professional does.
HR isn’t easy. You are constantly met with phrases such as “Uh oh, here comes HR,” or “We’ve always done it this way,” or “Why can’t we just get rid of that employee?” You have to be strong, resilient and above all, approachable. However, there are a lot of positives when working in HR, such as recruiting, especially hearing that candidate’s reaction when you offer them a job that has potentially just changed their life. Being able to coach people, watch people develop and see how you can help people in various ways is rewarding.
Essentially, you will need to be a people person. Someone who wants to deal with the good and the bad that comes from working with employees from all walks of life.
Lastly, this is an important element for me. Just because we work in HR, it doesn’t make us people to avoid, nor does it make us elite. HR professionals need to be aware of that as much as anyone.
You can find Colin on the web at COL HR Ltd. If you have any comments about your own experience in HR, please share them below!
Image by University of Salford, used under Creative Comms licence.