We will be hosting our Online Digital Transformation Conference this week, which will focus on ‘Unlocking Your Productive Potential’, with key takeaways about approaches to the Future of Work, HR Transformation, Digital Workplace & Digital Leadership.
In anticipation of the summit which you can still register for here, we wanted to release an article from our event partners Personio around the 4 key elements to successful HR Transformation and a brief preview of the event which takes place on June 23rd.
Digital transformation is a fundamental prerequisite for financial success. But this transformation is set to fail if it isn’t supported by competent, committed employees. The key element is people skills. The corona pandemic has acted as a powerful catalyst for companies’ digitalization & since successful Digital Transformation is all about the people, HR plays a pivotal role.
Digital transformation is about people and the ability to adapt through leaders who are able to guide employees through times of change. “Setting up a team comprised of experts in technology, data, and processes and guided by a strong leader is the most important step companies can take on their path towards digital transformation,” according to the Harvard Business Review.
“Empowering Employees is the linchpin for successful change”
HR departments are therefore confronted with challenges on various levels. They need to:
- Ensure that employees are able to adapt quickly to new circumstances
- Enable rapid changes of course by setting up agile teams and processes
- Make strategic, forward-thinking HR decisions based on valid data
- Provide seamless operational HR processes to free up time and capacity for implementing these initiatives
In a way, HR departments play a dual role in this process, as they need to drive their own HR transformation to support the digital transformation throughout the rest of their companies (click here to read Personio’s guide to organizational development). But how to approach digital transformation? The following four steps are your keys to success in this mission.
1. Get Your Employees Ready for the Future
Are smart technologies the first thing to comes to mind when you think about innovation? That’s only appropriate, but it’s still only half the story. After all, even the most brilliant piece of technology is of absolutely no use if nobody on the team knows how to use it to add value. As technology competence profiles change continually, focusing on soft skills is key! Employ curious, flexible people who are able to acquire “hard skills” quickly, and develop them within your teams. Almost more important in the process is leadership. You’ll need the right managers to implement your digital transformation successfully – people who guide their teams confidently and competently through the rapids of change. And it’s the job of HR managers to identify, develop and recruit precisely these kinds of people.
2. Use Employee Data for Strategic Decisions
The ability to make sound strategic decisions is a fundamental prerequisite for successful transformation. But these types of decisions demand reliable data that not only allow you to identify sticking points in the company’s well-oiled machine but also help you uncover new potential. While most companies know how important a set of sound data is, many still work with a range of different tools, among them Google Docs and Excel spreadsheets. The result is an error-prone set of incomplete data that forms an inadequate basis for strategic decisions. If HR managers don’t want to be relegated to the role of pencil pushers, they need data from a single source – and a solution that supports clean reporting.
3. Leverage Efficient Processes and Agile Structures
Agility and efficiency are admittedly words that can seem quite vague, but not so in the context of the digital transformation, where agility and efficiency are crucial. Companies need teams and processes that are able to adapt to changing circumstances in the blink of an eye. Just imagine you might be expanding internationally and need processes for your new offices. Or your company grows, merges, or needs to respond to an external crisis. Agility helps you to change course quickly. Without it, managing your company will be more like steering a sluggish freighter than a nimble speedboat. And what about efficiency? Efficiency is the basis for digital transformation in HR. Your company needs processes that mesh seamlessly and replace superfluous manual input. After all, you’ll only have the time to focus on strategic projects and drive transformation if manual and standardized processes can be taken care of automatically. That’s only logical, isn’t it?
4. Work With Technology as Your “Partner in Crime”
While digital transformation is a people issue above all, having the right technology is essential. In a study conducted by Bitkom and Personio, HR teams in the UK who worked with digital solutions to support their administration and reporting etc. stated that they were not only better able to master crises, they also tended to be strategically better prepared for their subsequent recovery. Companies that procrastinated in their decisions on new HR technology or worked with legacy software or fragmented solutions now find that a company’s resilience rests on efficient HR functions. In view of the above, HR managers need to deal with two core tasks:
- They need to select the right HR technology for their company.
- They need to use recruiting and development to get the right people on board in their teams – that means people who work with the technology to add value to the company.
Make your software your trusted support, your “partner in crime” who has your back throughout periods of change, and who’s there for you when things get hectic, complex, or confusing in your everyday work. If you do this successfully, you’ll handle your HR transformation mission confidently.
Digital Transformation Conference | June 23rd | ‘Unlocking Your Productive Potential’
If you would like to learn more about the role of HR within digital transformation & the future of work. We have a lineup of experts within the digital workplace who will be discussing a number of key topics across a 2-hour online event complete with networking & live speaker Q&A.
The opening presentation will be from Carolyn Moore, Global Director of Organizational Transformation at Arcadis. She will be discussing how Arcadis built a digital leadership program to empower their employees to assist teams and individuals in building digital teams who are highly adaptable to innovation & the future of work. Carolyn will offer insights into their approach to building digital leadership at all levels of the organization, bringing in outside-in critical thinking to their digital transformation. Her presentation will take place from 10-10:30 am CEST.
Our next keynote presentation (from 10:30-11 am CEST) will be delivered by Lars Boom, Country Manager for Benelux at Personio. Lars will present on why and how people are the single biggest influencer on the success of any business and any digital transformation effort looking at innovation created by workforces and how essential it is to have successful HR transformation and technology in place to achieve such harmony. We will look at the merits of digital workflows and how they can transform any business.
Then Vasuki Ranganath, Global HR Development Leader at Volvo will be joining us for a fireside chat which will discuss the challenges of people & culture transformation. Discussing strategic HR, leading and designing future-focused people practices in a fast-paced agile and digital environment. This HR transformation-themed interview will cover a vast array of questions, as Vasuki will provide insights into how he has overseen global innovation through Volvo.
Our final session of the day will be a panel session focussed on Championing the Future of Work & Digital Workplace to Unlock Productivity. The panel will feature:
- Lars Boom, Country Manager for Benelux at Personio
- Jyotin Shah, Global Director, Digital Workplace Services at Mondelēz
- Katharina Brodt, Head of Germany Communications & Digital Workplace at Umicore
The panel session will look at the biggest challenges faced when looking at the digital workplace and preparation for the future of work. Our panelists will share their personal views on digital transformation, how technology can enhance communications, collaboration & efficiency. Creating a culture of adoption innovation through recruitment, training, and internal communications. The open discussion will also explore digitalization within HR vs company culture, prioritization of innovation and technology & workforce preparedness for the future of work within a digital workplace.
The full conference will last 2 hours from 10 am CEST on Wednesday 23rd June, registration for the event is free and will also gain you access to all sessions OnDemand post-event. If you would like to register, please follow this link – http://digitaltransformationeurope.com/
Read the full article from Personio on their blog – https://www.personio.com/blog/the-path-to-successful-hr-transformation/