{"id":91268,"date":"2023-06-02T10:35:48","date_gmt":"2023-06-02T17:35:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/?p=91268"},"modified":"2023-12-17T16:14:38","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T00:14:38","slug":"hr-language-of-business-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"Why HR Must Learn to Speak the Language of Business Strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-ht-block-toc is-style-contrasted htoc htoc--position-wide toc-list-style-plain\" data-htoc-state=\"closed\"><span class=\"htoc__title\"><span class=\"ht_toc_title\">Table of Contents<\/span><span class=\"htoc__toggle\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\"><g fill=\"#444\"><path d=\"M15 7H1c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1s.4 1 1 1h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1s-.4-1-1-1z\"><\/path><path d=\"M15 1H1c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1s.4 1 1 1h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1s-.4-1-1-1zM15 13H1c-.6 0-1 .4-1 1s.4 1 1 1h14c.6 0 1-.4 1-1s-.4-1-1-1z\"><\/path><\/g><\/svg><\/span><\/span><div class=\"htoc__itemswrap\"><ul class=\"ht_toc_list\"><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#h-hr-leaders-are-still-mired-in-tactical-work\">HR leaders are still mired in tactical work<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#h-many-hr-professionals-aren-t-confident-in-business-meetings\">Many HR professionals aren\u2019t confident in business meetings<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#h-build-key-relationships-across-the-organization\">Build key relationships across the organization<\/a><\/li><li class=\"\"><a href=\"#h-business-leaders-don-t-always-see-the-value-in-people\">Business leaders don\u2019t always see the value in people<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Editor\u2019s note: This is the first in a series of six articles on how to become a strategic HR leader.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For all our talk of gaining our seat at the table, many HR professionals still haven\u2019t mastered the language of business strategy. To help our employees and organizations succeed, the truth is that we must understand how the two are intertwined and speak to it. Let me explain by way of example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I once collaborated with a chief HR officer and her team to spearhead HR transformation at their company. My top priority was linking the business strategy to the talent strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I invited the team to walk me through the company\u2019s business strategy. When no one stepped forward, I shared my own slide deck to walk <em>them<\/em> through the business plan. After the presentation, I gave every person in the room sticky notes to write down their current initiatives and asked them to match their sticky notes to specific business objectives.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Only two of 29 HR initiatives aligned with their company\u2019s business strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This isn\u2019t uncommon. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.accenture.com\/us-en\/insights\/consulting\/chro-growth-executive\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an Accenture report<\/a>, 89% of CEOs say CHROs have an essential role in creating long-term profitable growth. Yet only 29% of CHROs have the profile and business conditions they need to achieve this. If you\u2019re not comfortable talking business strategy with the leadership team, you can\u2019t galvanize the transformational change in HR processes that your business needs to thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-recommendedread-Z25xAFp align  wp-block-lazyblock-recommendedread\">        <div class=\"recommended-read-notice\">Recommended Read<\/div> \n        <div class=\"recommended-read-box\">\n            <div class=\"recommended-read-image\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/MakeWorkBetter-JamieAitken-BlogThumb.jpg\" alt=\"\">\n            <\/div>          \n            <div class=\"recommended-read-text\">\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-categories\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/category\/vantage-point\/betterworks-insights\/\">Betterworks Insights<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/category\/vantage-point\/hr-leadership\/\">HR Leadership<\/a><\/div>\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-title\">Make Work Better: A Call to Action for HR and Business Leaders to Rethink Performance Management<\/div>\n                <div><a class=\"recommended-read-cta\" href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/make-work-better-a-call-to-action-for-hr-and-business-leaders-to-rethink-performance-management\/\">Read Now<\/a><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-hr-leaders-are-still-mired-in-tactical-work\">HR leaders are still mired in tactical work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>HR leaders can struggle to embrace transformative strategy because they\u2019re still mired in tactical and administrative tasks. This situation is all too common, even as many business leaders want to focus HR\u2019s role on people strategy. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/sage-business-cloud\/people\/resources\/research-analyst-reports\/the-changing-face-of-hr-research-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a report from Sage<\/a>, 73% of HR leaders and 76% of C-suite executives believe that most of HR\u2019s work remains administrative and process-oriented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Making this shift requires trusting other leaders in your organization with responsibilities that once belonged to HR. For example, if career coaching was always HR\u2019s job, giving that accountability to managers can feel uncomfortable at first. But isn\u2019t it better to develop managers to handle coaching than to try to be the caretaker for every single worker\u2019s career? This isn\u2019t about giving up power. It\u2019s about transitioning to modern talent management \u2014 a more sustainable system where HR provides training and resources to managers, who in turn coach their team members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The unintended consequence of focusing so heavily on tactical work is that HR isn\u2019t inherently seen as strategic \u2014 and therefore isn\u2019t included in strategy sessions. HR risks being seen as only an order taker. Your CEO may even come to view the projects or programs you want to initiate with suspicion, making it harder for you to compete against other initiatives requiring support and resources.9 <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Becoming more strategic starts by freeing yourself from many of the details. Ask yourself: What are the things that I\u2019m doing that have little or no business impact? Review your tasks for business relevance each quarter, and purge what doesn\u2019t produce clear business value. This is an important first step in being more strategic, speaking the language of business, and transforming HR. Focus on actions that move the needle for the business \u2014 and be honest with yourself about this.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-recommendedread-b5c9j align  wp-block-lazyblock-recommendedread\">        <div class=\"recommended-read-notice\">Recommended Read<\/div> \n        <div class=\"recommended-read-box\">\n            <div class=\"recommended-read-image\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/9TakeawaysfromtheMWBSummit-Thumbnail.jpg\" alt=\"\">\n            <\/div>          \n            <div class=\"recommended-read-text\">\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-categories\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/category\/vantage-point\/hr-leadership\/\">HR Leadership<\/a> | <a href=\"\/okrs\/\">Strategic Alignment &amp; Execution<\/a><\/div>\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-title\">9 Ways HR Leaders Can Lead Workforce Transformation<\/div>\n                <div><a class=\"recommended-read-cta\" href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/9-ways-hr-leaders-can-lead-workforce-transformation\/\">Read Now<\/a><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-many-hr-professionals-aren-t-confident-in-business-meetings\">Many HR professionals aren\u2019t confident in business meetings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Because the HR function has long reacted to business needs rather than setting the agenda, HR professionals aren\u2019t always confident in leading conversations that rely on their financial and business acumen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I was recently advising an HR team preparing to make the business case for adopting a new performance management system. Unfortunately, the project lead\u2019s rationale wasn\u2019t about why the business needed the new system to increase organizational performance, but rather that the current process was not working. That reason might not be compelling enough to sway the CEO, especially when competing against other initiatives also seeking funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Any initiative you propose has to be backed by clear business goals and objectives. That\u2019s the language HR has to embrace to overcome communication barriers and drive business strategy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-build-key-relationships-across-the-organization\">Build key relationships across the organization<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To truly embrace your role as a strategic adviser, you need to form alliances across the business. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/7-questions-chros-should-ask-themselves-about-their-role\/\">Leading CHROs<\/a> are four times more likely than their peers to have strong, mutually beneficial relationships across the C-suite, including with the CFO, the CTO, and the COO, according to Accenture\u2019s report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Go outside HR to better understand the business holistically. Find partners across functions you can learn from, such as IT, operations, or finance. By building relationships with these other stakeholders, you learn more about what they need from HR. It\u2019s also good practice as you learn to discuss these topics with authority. When you\u2019re comfortable talking with your peers casually about people strategy, you\u2019ll find it easier to address these topics more formally during business planning meetings.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-recommendedread-ZjVDpU align  wp-block-lazyblock-recommendedread\">        <div class=\"recommended-read-notice\">Recommended Read<\/div> \n        <div class=\"recommended-read-box\">\n            <div class=\"recommended-read-image\">\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/6Insights-blog.jpg\" alt=\"\">\n            <\/div>          \n            <div class=\"recommended-read-text\">\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-categories\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/category\/vantage-point\/betterworks-insights\/\">Betterworks Insights<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/category\/vantage-point\/hr-leadership\/\">HR Leadership<\/a><\/div>\n                <div class=\"recommended-read-title\">6 Insights for HR Leaders to Expand Your Effectiveness and Influence<\/div>\n                <div><a class=\"recommended-read-cta\" href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/6-insights-for-hr-leaders-to-expand-your-effectiveness-and-influence\/\">Read Now<\/a><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve noticed that HR leaders can be shy about building up their leadership network because they\u2019re more comfortable <em>offering<\/em> help than <em>asking<\/em> for help. Making the ask is an important step in transforming the HR function. After all, you need the support of leaders in IT and operations just as much as they need your insights and expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you go first and build relationships across the business, your peers in leadership will see your vision \u2014 and they\u2019ll learn what you need from them to bring it to life. The same applies when making the case for your initiatives. You can\u2019t just ask for dollars \u2014 you have to demonstrate clearly what you plan to do and how it&#8217;ll help the business. It\u2019s a shift from, \u201cI\u2019m here to serve you\u201d to \u201cHere\u2019s how supporting this initiative is going to help the business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn to ask the right, business-oriented questions. When I was working on one big HR transformation project, I made a classic mistake: I asked everyone what was broken within the current HR process and what everyone\u2019s pain points were. The question was HR-centric, and I got nothing useful from the responses I received (which were really just lists of complaints). Mostly, I learned that everyone hated the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After realizing my mistake, I reframed my questions and instead asked about the biggest business challenges they were having. How could HR better support them in overcoming those challenges?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By shifting the question to focus on the business, I cut to the root of the problem and moved the conversation toward strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><em>&#8220;I\u2019ve noticed that HR leaders can be shy about building up their leadership network because they\u2019re more comfortable offering help than than <em>asking<\/em> for help. &#8230;When you go first and build relationships across the business, your peers in leadership will see your vision \u2014 and they\u2019ll learn what you need from them to bring it to life.&#8221;<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-business-leaders-don-t-always-see-the-value-in-people\">Business leaders don\u2019t always see the value in people<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>HR plays a critical role in communicating the value of people as an asset. This is especially important in organizations where <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2019\/10\/the-problem-with-accounting-for-employees-as-costs-instead-of-assets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">workers have traditionally been perceived as a cost center<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Think about it this way: Any manufacturing plant has tight controls on its processes, tools, and equipment. Only trained and qualified people are allowed on the assembly line because if the equipment is mishandled or injuries occur, production stops, and the business fails to meet its targets.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Employees everywhere also drive value for the business, not just on the shop floor. Yet they often don\u2019t receive the same level of attention as other assets when it comes to maintaining a high level of performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Clearly demonstrating the value of your workforce is a critical part of your role as an HR leader.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once, when working with a manufacturer, I participated in a conversation about solving a multidisciplinary challenge \u2014 part of which involved sourcing the right people to improve production levels in another location. While they were discussing the problem, I pulled up a list of qualified candidates who were willing to relocate to help solve the problem.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The manufacturer&#8217;s leadership understood at that moment how talent could be deployed to solve business challenges. Remember that these conversations and solutions occur in the flow of business. So HR needs to be in the room alongside finance, supply chain, and other key business functions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As an HR leader, you always have to be ready to speak up and contribute insight into how people can solve business challenges. Make it a point to share your deep expertise. The more you speak up, the more practiced you\u2019ll become in advising the business \u2014 and you\u2019ll become an indispensable part of the leadership team. By learning to speak the language of business, you can shape your workplace for the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>As VP of HR Transformation at Betterworks, Jamie helps customers reimagine the way employee performance is managed with proven systems and processes that work.<\/em> <em>She is co-author of the book,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Make-Work-Better-Revolutionizing-Employees\/dp\/1510774912\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1U6QUUPW2PJ91&amp;keywords=make+work+better+aitken&amp;qid=1674502998&amp;sprefix=make+work+better+aitken%2Caps%2C147&amp;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Make Work Better<\/a>, and draws inspiration from her more than twenty-five years of HR leadership experience, spearheading organizational development, HR transformation, and employee engagement strategies that boost business performance.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"lazyblock-post-resource-cta-Z1pLCV4 align  wp-block-lazyblock-post-resource-cta\"><div class=\"custom-post-resource-box\" style=\"background:url('https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/2023-HowToBeStrategicHRLeader-Horizontal.jpg;') no-repeat center;background-color:;box-shadow: 0px 0px 18px -5px ;background-color:\">\n  <div class=\"custom-box-heading\" style=\"max-width:50%;\"><p style=\"color:#ffffff;font-size:30px\">Master the elements of strategic HR leadership<\/p><\/div>\n  <div class=\"custom-box-cta\" style=\"\"><a class=\"et_pb_button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/how-to-be-a-strategic-hr-leader\/\" style=\"color:#008AAB;background-color:#ffffff;\">LEARN HOW<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Editor\u2019s note: This is the first in a series of six articles on how to become a strategic HR leader. For all our talk of gaining our seat at the table, many HR professionals still haven\u2019t mastered the language of business strategy. To help our employees and organizations succeed, the truth is that we must [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":91269,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","content-type":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3515,3518],"tags":[],"featured_location":[],"industry":[],"class_list":["post-91268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-betterworks-insights","category-hr-leadership"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v18.1 (Yoast SEO v23.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Speak the Language of Business to Drive Strategic HR - Betterworks<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Practicing strategic HR requires overcoming the language barrier between HR and others in leadership. Learn how to speak the language of business strategy.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why HR Must Learn to Speak the Language of Business Strategy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Practicing strategic HR requires overcoming the language barrier between HR and others in leadership. Learn how to speak the language of business strategy.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Betterworks\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BetterWorks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-06-02T17:35:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-12-18T00:14:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Strategic-HR-Speaking-the-language-of-leadership-SEO-Blog-Thumbnail.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jamie Aitken\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Betterworks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Betterworks\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jamie Aitken\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b826fc333af6559bb13899c5fa5926bc\"},\"headline\":\"Why HR Must Learn to Speak the Language of Business Strategy\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-06-02T17:35:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-12-18T00:14:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\"},\"wordCount\":1594,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Strategic-HR-Speaking-the-language-of-leadership-SEO-Blog-Thumbnail.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Betterworks Insights\",\"HR Leadership\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/\",\"name\":\"Speak the Language of Business to Drive Strategic HR - Betterworks\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/magazine\/hr-language-of-business-strategy\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.betterworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Strategic-HR-Speaking-the-language-of-leadership-SEO-Blog-Thumbnail.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-06-02T17:35:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-12-18T00:14:38+00:00\",\"description\":\"Practicing strategic HR requires overcoming the language barrier between HR and others in leadership. 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