Building an ‘Enterprise’, a true enterprise which establishes and sustains an environment of high-growth driven by a robust value system is what most entrepreneurs with substance, ‘dream of’.
An often ignored fact, is that in the quest of creating a successful business, organization becomes a casualty (most often scenario); or in the mission of building a highly value driven organization, business gets compromised (rarely, but true).
So, how to create an enterprise which is built for maximizing value to all of its stakeholders at the same time doesn’t give up on the basic tenets of people affability, fairness and healthy competition?
I believe the ‘key’ to this lies in building a ‘human resource’ practice which appreciates and internalizes both the wheels of the ‘enterprise chariot’ i.e. people and business.
‘Human Resource’ practice has had great strides in the recent decade or so. HR has hit a path of transformation from being just a reactive ‘personnel query’ department to donning a much more proactive role in the development of an organization’s human capital.
I believe, while performing these (still close-to traditional) roles, HR has not even achieved 25% of what it is supposed to be doing in this current competitive scenario.
The need of the hour – while HR is intended to cater to the 3600 perspective of fostering a deeply ingrained value system /manage people aspirations /emphasize development /prioritize evaluation /give a roadmap for building successful future leaders and many more of the immediate needs of current workforce; it is also a pressing need for HR to actively participate in the ‘business’ aspects of the ‘enterprise’.
The days of an HR leader being a ‘people person’ with soft skills have long passed. There are no more ‘soft skills’, there is only ‘business acumen’. Every decision, plan, or process has to be aligned with the core business strategy of the enterprise. As a true business enabler, HR must be able to add value to the enterprise’s overall strategic objectives. Simply stated, the bar has been raised. To add value in this spectrum, HR must innovate and continue to step outside of traditional roles and proactively seek out opportunities to learn and thoroughly understand the business we support. To participate and contribute in business discussions, HR must not only ensure smooth systems and processes, but consider the strategic impacts of talent acquisition and organization building choices. It is all about creating and delivering value aligned with the enterprise’s objectives. HR leaders must first be strategic business enablers who just happen to manage the most valuable assets of the organization—its human capital.
Hence, it is imperative that the two wheels of the chariot of an enterprise – People and Business goes hand in hand and it is high time that we engage HR as an enabler for building successful and true ‘enterprises’.
Ravishankar S Aiyar
Vice President
