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HR Departments Need Business Acumen Too

Guest post by: Donna Flagg

Article Overview: The problem with a lot of HR departments is that companies relegate them too far to a “back office” mentality. This only renders the people who work in them out of touch with the front of the house where an understanding of the business and the people driving it is critical. So, in order for human resource employees to be the necessary link that connects internal functions with external performance, those working in HR should be as business minded and savvy as they are administrative and up on HR laws.

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HR Departments Need Business Acumen Too

The problem with a lot of HR departments is that companies relegate them too far to a “back office” mentality. This only renders the people who work in them out of touch with the front of the house where an understanding of the business and the people driving it is critical. So, in order for human resource employees to be the necessary link that connects internal functions with external performance, those working in HR should be as business minded and savvy as they are administrative and up on HR laws.

Here are some easy things you can do to bridge that gap and in turn create better organizational synergy and continuity:

1. Have HR employees create positioning statements that present the department and its offerings to the organization the same way a marketing department would prepare for entry into the marketplace.
2. Give them something to sell and monitor their individual and departmental productivity.
3. Make them responsible for budgets and P&L.
4. Put them on the line on a regular basis.
5. Measure them in quantifiable business related metrics such as profitability, productivity, effectiveness and efficiency.

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Home > Human-Resources > Donna Flagg > HR Departments Need Business Acumen Too
Article Tags: budgets, continuity, effectiveness and efficiency, external performance, gap, hr departments, hr employees, hr laws, human resource, internal functions, marketing department, marketplace, mentality, metrics, offerings, productivity, profitability, synergy

About the Author: Donna Flagg
RSS for Donna's articles - Visit Donna's website

Donna Flagg spent over 15 years in business before founding The Krysalis Group, a consulting firm specializing in management, marketing, training and sales and their respective relationships to business results. Her management career began in sales at CHANEL, and before branching out on her own, she spearheaded a new training function within the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs.

After earning a BA from Rutgers University and gaining experience on the front lines of Corporate America, Donna went on to attend New York University's Graduate School of Education where she obtained a master's degree in Organizational Development and Human Resource Management, and a post graduate degree in Business Education. She has also been a speaker at City University of New York (CUNY) and New York University through Stern Business School and Delta Pi Epsilon, a national honorary professional graduate society in business education and training. In addition, she speaks at various conferences including those conducted by The Business Leadership Network and The Conference Board, where she was also on the advisory committee for the Enterprise Learning Strategies Conference. For her communications expertise, Donna was invited to be a host at the Liz Claiborne Leadership Offsite to discuss branding during their "Progressive Dinner" event and more recently, a speaker at the Inc. Leadership Conference in Dallas, TX.

Donna is the author of Surviving Dreaded Conversations and is blogger on Pyschology Today and The Huffington Post. She is frequently featured in the press for her workplace expertise in outlets including CNBC, the New York Times, WOR, and XM Satellite Radio.

Donna currently sits on the Board of Directors of the Randy Foye Foundation where she actively participates in its mission to assist children and families in Newark, NJ.



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