How to create an effective people strategy in 2020

What is people strategy?

For a business to keep developing, growing and improving performance they need to optimize their workforce. This means creating and properly implementing an effective people strategy. Aligning your business goals, and outcomes with an effective people strategy is often overlooked. Organizations often think that their employees should automatically align themselves to business goals. Their needs to be structure and strategy in place, detailing how people help to achieve and deliver business objectives.

A people strategy and an HR strategy are different things. HR strategy is an organizational plan for human capital to align it to an organization’s activities. Its sets direction for key HR areas including compensation and pay, development, performance, onboarding and recruitment. A people strategy outlines the company’s relationship with and approach to their employees. It outlines how the organization plans to utilize its employees to achieve its objectives. People strategies need to be flexible in order to change as the business develops and challenges arise. An effective people strategy is an essential part of the strategic business planning process, allowing organizations to plan and meet their workforce needs as well as your HR strategy.

Why do you want a people strategy?

There are a number of reasons why is it important to have an effective people strategy. It will best utilize your most important asset – your people and will get the most out of them. An effective people strategy will support business aims and objectives. It will also ensure that your internal capability fits with your overall business aims. Finally, it puts HR and more importantly people, at the centre of your business. Making them an integral part of the organizations vision.

How to create an effective people strategy in 2020

Horizon Scanning

Horizon scanning is a future orientated methodology. It is the practice of monitoring and tracking changes in the business environment which may have an impact on the individual business. Understanding, monitoring and even predicting change in the business environment is imperative to managing risk.

Recognize Key Components

What do you believe is key to make an effective people strategy in your organization? It’s not a one size fits all policy. One organization’s people strategy won’t automatically translate to another. What is important to your organization when devising a people strategy for 2020?

Establishing Priorities

Establishing what the business objectives for the upcoming period and longer term is important. Establishing what your people strategy look s like is also very important. One does not supersede another, and both must be considered as highly important. It is helpful to consider and establish priorities alongside these metrics: objectives, resources and timeframe. What do we want to look like in X months/years? What do we need to get there? / Do we have the capabilities? How long do we have to achieve this?

Monitor Progress

It’s not going to be set the strategy and let fate take its course. Instead, devise your people strategy, set it in motion and keep checking the progress. Are things going as planned? If not, identify the issue and address it. Continuous monitoring, reviewing and if necessary, revising strategy is an important and necessary element.

Create an Accessible Document for Reference

Present a final strategy document or policy in an accessible and employee-friendly manner.