Aligning Technology-driven HR with business objectives

By Mr. Patrick Clenjans, Principal of ABeam Consulting (Thailand) Ltd.

Throughout the pandemic every business function has been challenged, but perhaps none more so than the human resource management department. From building understanding about how different workspaces can operate, such as working from home (WFH) and practical physical distancing in the workplace, to the looming spectre of ‘the great resignation’ or even managing downsizing, complex and challenging circumstances have become the ‘new normal’ for human resource practitioners. This is all while trying to maintain a sense of stability for employees that are often looking to human resources for support.

In the last two years have felt like an eternity, but for many companies the situation has resulted in a major shift in thinking about the importance of human capital management. The crisis has meant senior leaders now see the value of having the right people in place when challenges are presented, and the HR role has been elevated and places at the top table are now reserved for this function. 

Talent mobility, capability academies, skills models, recruiting, and leadership development are not new issues, but they play more important role nowadays. As professional human capital practitioners we need to develop new ways of managing these challenges, particularly as our new elevated position will also come with additional scrutiny. How do we continue to add value to our business?

Rethinking the HR organisation with a digital mindset is the first step to a successful transformation. HR leaders need to begin thinking of the department as a professional services organization, fully equipped with consultants, product managers, service delivery, and technology all in one.  This is done by analyzing the skills and capabilities of your HR team, and looking where each member is at in terms of their development. This includes the HR business partners, the domain specialists, the consultants, the designers, the tech people, and the staff.

It will help you identify where HR technology can support your organization to address the changing business needs by providing more enhanced and sophisticated solutions, increasing automation, and more optimized processes, Leveraging technology to increase employee experience and engagement, increased cross domain collaboration and increased data insights 

Traditionally, people analytics tools have focused on tasks like maintaining headcount and open roles, but they have often failed to add value beyond the administrative level. Today, HR leaders are being asked to collect and analyze more people information than ever, and this means they need systems that are proactive and leverage reliable data to surface useful insights and guide more on the predictive of future workforce so they can prepare for all perspective to serve the need in dynamic workplace. 

Effective people analytics tools compile and transform all important details about an organization's people, teams, and work-related behavior into actionable insights that can significantly improve business outcomes and goals. When generated properly and delivered directly in the flow of work, this information can revolutionize the way leaders build teams, allocate pay resources, improve diversity and inclusion efforts, and more.

A recent Gartner Survey revealed that HR leaders’ is number one priority in 2022 will be building critical skills and competencies in order to be able to meet current and future challenges and utilizing data will be key to the success of the HR function overcoming this challenge. 

In addition, there need to be a renewed focus on deepening C-suite reliance on and trust in the HR function, and to do this HR needs to be able to provide valuable insights and analysis to the business. This is how it can prove its value and demonstrate how HR is fully aligned with overall business objectives and is working collaboratively to achieve them.

There is no doubt that new technologies are shifting workplace dynamics, but it will also play a critical role in attracting the right people (Talent acquisition management), upskilling or reskilling people (L&D), and helping people engage with company 

Finding the right solution, and enabling the right data, will improve decision making at all levels. And implementing comprehensive employee management apps will help enhancing engagement and productivity, offer transparency, and supply real-time data so it’s easier to make informed business decisions, and even improve the employer brand.

The era of technology-driven human capital management is here. It’s time to grasp it and create new opportunities.

ABeam Consulting (Thailand) Ltd. is a subsidiary of ABeam Consulting Ltd. –headquartered in Tokyo having 6,600 people serve more than 1,100 clients throughout Asia, the Americas and Europe providing consulting services in Thailand since 2005, ABeam Consulting (Thailand) has 400 professionals serving more than 200 clients in Thailand with expertise in digital transformation services that create strategic advantage, improve business processes, leverage technology innovation and enhance organizational performance with ERP and all other solutions including Management Consulting, Digital BPI, Data Analysis, IT project management and outsourcing for leading companies in Thailand.  Moreover, ABeam has been in a strong partnership with SAP and provided services by SAP-certified consultants to achieve clients’ transformation. ABeam partners with clients to diagnose and solve their real challenges with solutions that combine industry and operational best practices with technical expertise. Pragmatic approaches ensure that clients gain measurable value more quickly. With the management philosophy to be "Real Partner", ABeam provides real people, real solutions, and real results to ensure clients' success. For more information, please visit https://www.abeam.com/th/en.