Much has been said on every HR forum about the changing role of HR from an operational support provider to that of a strategist. Here I would like to argue that most HR managers are neither empowered nor equipped to play that role. Perhaps the reason why the topic remains trapped at coffee talks and rarely implemented?

What motivates the HR Manager? 

Hypes aside, HR managers are motivated to deliver what they are measured on.  In a classic role, a typical HR Manager is required to ensure

It is obvious that, barring the last point, most of the deliverables from an HR Manager remain tactical and there is hardly any room to be strategic. But even in matters of policies and compensation,  without being equipped with the right tools the HR Manager can only borrow policies from the industry and benchmark compensation, benefits etc based on thumb rules conveniently termed as 'industry norm'.

HR Strategist – Same cap, different heads.
Depending on the level of maturity of an organization, different people play the role of the HR Strategist.

In a young rapidly growing company in the knowledge, technology or service business the CEO is the Strategist. For a company of less than 50 employees, it is important for the Entrepreneur CEO to communicate his/her vision and have a pulse on the company’s people ‘assets’ through direct communication. He/she is also able to know each employees competencies, motivations and performance at a personal level.

Breaking the 50's barrier.
As the company goes from 50 to 200, there is a significant transition. Without proper tools CEO is unable to manage a larger team using traditional methods, hence he/she hands down the 'Strategist' role to a COO or a group of line managers. Transitioning also involves a separation of responsibilities between line managers who are now required to manage the strategic aspects of HR - employee performance, motivations, competencies, compensations etc while HR managers are required to manage the operational aspects of HR - payroll, benefits, leave etc. Typically at this stage most companies experiment with automation or outsourcing to support operational aspects of HR - tools for employee record management, recruitment, payroll etc

From Small to Medium to Large
As the organizations goes from small to medium, there is yet another transition for the HR Strategist's role. Companies poised for rapid growth consolidate this role under a 'Corporate Strategist' or a Head of HR whose job is now to create a vision for developing and maintaining people assets.

Organizations growing from medium to large do not experience a radical shift in role for the strategist. However for a smooth and uninterrupted growth, it is imperative that the transitions are successfully managed. Unmanaged transitions would result in the Head of HR remaining a figurehead ‘Strategist’ and an indispensable ‘firefighter’.       

Success Factors for Transitioning: 'Strategics’ and Strategic tools
Identifying what should be termed as ‘strategic’ is the first step towards a successful transition.  If business success is a singular strategic goal, and a CEOs objective are aligned to this goal, it becomes relatively easy to define these goals for all the employees through cascading.  If goals define the ‘what’ of strategy, people competencies define the ‘how’.  Measuring goal achievement provides the output and measuring competencies, the inputs.  For a CEO, at the time of  transitioning it is important to put systems in place to define the ‘what and how’ and  to measure the ‘input and output’ so that he/she retains the visibility on what is strategically important  even though the management of this is outsourced to his line managers. Acquiring the right tools for measuring and managing performance and competency therefore become a critical success factor for the first transition.

As the organization matures and the Strategist’s cap is handed back to the Head of HR the responsibility of operational HR and strategic HR comes directly under one role.  For the Head of HR to remain strategic, it now becomes important to manage using metrics.  A successful transitioning therefore requires tools that not only efficiently manage operational and strategic aspects but provides sufficient dashboards, control and supporting data across the spectrum. 

Choosing the right tools is an important part of the Strategist’s role. The questions to pose yourself are -

As businesses become increasing knowledge intensive, people ‘assets’ take the center stage as core competence for the business. The HR strategist and decisions regarding enabling tools can play a critical role in business success.

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