Business Acumen for the Strategic HR Business Partner Wendy Heckelman, Ph.D. and Sheryl Unger, MILR

1. Business Acumen for the
Strategic HR Business Partner
Wendy Heckelman, Ph.D. and Sheryl Unger, MILR
WLH Consulting, Inc.
2703 Cypress Manor
Suite 100
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33332
954-385-0770
www.wlhconsulting.com
wendy@wlhconsulting.com

2. Session Overview
HR Function – Expectations and Needs
What is Business Acumen?
Why is it important to the HR Function?
How to develop your Business Acumen
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3. Key Demands on HR
Attract,
Develop,
and Retain
Talent
Manage Align with
Risk the
Business
HR
Function
Establish
Understand
and
the
Maintain
Business
Culture
SHRM Foundation Leadership Roundtable
What’s Next for HR
November 2010
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4. Why HR Business Acumen?
HR needs to do a better job of: Provides an opportunity to:
Understanding their clients' world
Help drive profitability
Realizing the many influences
affecting costs Help employees better
understand their clients
Proposing alternative solutions to
business unit problems Helps leaders make better
business decisions regarding
Quantifying human capital
resource allocation to meet
challenges
intended results
Partnering with line leaders through
Foster a more aligned business
mergers, acquisitions, and other
partnership
organizational restructuring efforts
Analyzing and tracking metrics that
impact the business and improve
decision making
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5. Talent Needs of the HR Function
Strategic Thinking and Value Creation:
– Know the business
– Think strategically
– Create tangible business value
– Stay aligned with business strategy
Business Acumen and Orientation:
– Understand the business
– Think about the overall success of the business
– Apply functional expertise and provide solutions
SHRM Foundation Leadership Roundtable
What’s Next for HR
November 2010
5

6. Business Acumen Defined
Linking an insightful
assessment of the external
External
business landscape with Pressures
the keen awareness of
how money can be
made…and then executing
the strategy to deliver the
desired results.” Internal
Commercial
Ram Charan Strategy
Bestselling co-author of Execution
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7. HR Professionals Need to Know
Drivers Costs to
of the
Revenue Company
How can you maximize human capital
to impact the balance sheet?
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8. Business Acumen in Action
Knowledge Application Results
1 2 3
3
Draw sound Take Execute
conclusions appropriate effectively to
from action steps drive results for
information your organization
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9. Business Acumen in Action
Understand your company's business model,
structure, products and services, and competitive
Knowledge advantage - HOW YOU MAKE MONEY:
– Talking to people who are in the business
– Asking questions
1 Keep informed:
– Company
Draw sound – Industry
conclusions – Financial Reports
– Listen to investor relations calls (if applicable)
from
– Participate in strategic planning sessions or any other "live
information event" that will give you the latest company information
– Competitive landscape
Use meaningful data and analytics, i.e., other
functions (finance, marketing, operations) that
make the business case and discuss ROI
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10. Business Acumen in Action
Understand how the business and HR goals
link to the overall company priorities
Application
Spend time ensuring your goals link to the
1
business
2 Solicit from others’ perspectives on problems
and issues to ensure that alternate points of
Take view are factored into the search for solutions
appropriate
action steps Make data-driven decisions
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11. Business Acumen in Action
Partner with business to execute human capital
strategy plans
Results
Ensure stakeholders are aligned with efforts to
maximize human capital
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3 Calibrate plans to meet goals or adjust to
changes in the environment
Execute
effectively to Establish metrics that demonstrate how HR is:
drive results for – Managing corporate resources
your organization – Improving bottom-line results
– Moving beyond “reducing costs”
Continuously engage stakeholders in the
importance of maximizing human capital
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12. Differences between
Average and Exceptional
Average HR Partners Exceptional HR Partners
Provide overall direction and Enhance direct reports’
support regarding strategic understanding of their effect on
direction company results and profitability
Mentor and coach others on
Share goals and targets effectively integrating data into
Directive style versus engaging action plans
direct reports in an inquiry into the Leverage team members’ business
drivers impacting sales and knowledge to support others and
performance achieve results
Encourage and ensure people
share and build on each others’
business knowledge, experience,
opinions, and ideas
Actively liaise and align with others
across levels, divisions, functions,
and departments
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13. Business Acumen in Action
Understand the business’ operating cycle
Takes responsibility for learning about, and being alert to,
Knowledge changes in the business
Analyzes information to uncover trends and opportunities
Uses data-driven business information to provide insights and
recommendations to internal stakeholders / employees
Identifies and develops HR solutions directly aligned with the
business strategy
Application1 3
Leverages the full range of HR knowledge, expertise, and
resources to provide solutions that meet business requirements
Aligns HR priorities with the business agenda
Makes data-driven decisions
Decisions demonstrate an understanding of the business
Results Makes financially sound decisions
Drives for measurable business outcomes
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14. Critical Metrics
Cost-benefit analysis
Efficiency Financial efficiency of HR Operations (cost-per-hire
Resources used time-to-fill, training costs)
by HR Benchmarks against data from other organizations
Using HR dashboards / scorecards
Effectiveness
Measuring turnover, attitudes, bench strength
Changes produced by HR
programs
Measuring the specific effects of HR programs
Measuring the effect of HR programs on business
Impact outcomes
The business or strategic Supporting organizational change efforts
value created by the HR
activity / program Connecting human capital practices to organizational
performance
Assessing the feasibility of new business strategies
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15. Getting Started
Assess your own capabilities related to business
acumen
Identify potential developmental activities to
incorporate into your IDP to improve your business
acumen
Work with other HR colleagues to evaluate the
functions’:
– Business acumen; especially use of evidence-based
metrics
– Responsiveness to business needs
– Direct support of business strategy
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16. Questions and Answers
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17. WLH Consulting, Inc.
Overview
2703 Cypress Manor
Suite 100
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33332
954-385-0770
www.wlhconsulting.com
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18. WLH Practice Focus
Strategy Development and Execution
Strategy Formation
Senior Team Alignment
Execution Planning and Implementation
Mergers and Acquisitions
Business Planning and Resource Allocation
Business Performance Improvement
Business Diagnostics
Organizational Design and Effectiveness
Process Excellence
Cultural Transformation and Change Management
Human Capital Strategy
Leadership Development
Competency Models and Tools
Talent and Development Planning
Engagement and Retention
Learning Strategy and Curriculum Design
Blended Learning Solutions
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19. WLH Business Acumen Offerings
Our customized consulting practice can partner with
you to:
Customize the Business Acumen Program for HR employees
Adapt the Business Acumen Program for other functional areas
Provide consulting services and programs to improve:
‒ Managing Teams
‒ Jump Starting Teams
‒ Consulting Skills: Delivering Value to your Clients
‒ Business Planning and Resource Allocation
‒ Coaching for High Performance
‒ Rx for Retention
‒ Increasing Efficiency While Reducing Costs
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20. WLH Team
Our team combines the diverse expertise of:
Ph.D. industrial/organizational psychologists
Experienced consultants with 20+ years experience partnering with
clients to develop strategies, engage in process reengineering, and
mutually execute business solutions
Experts in developing comprehensive human capital strategies and
tools
Designers and developers of integrated, blended learning systems
Skilled facilitators to help participants successfully manage change,
identify issues, and resolve problems
Trained project managers for large scale client initiatives
Unique talents + Collaborative expertise = Breakthrough Results
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21. WLH Advantage
We partner to implement streamlined,
Collaborative customized, and efficient solutions that deliver
results
Our flexibility allows us to adjust to changing
Highly Adaptive needs throughout each engagement or project
life cycle
Scientifically We rely on proven methods for data collection,
statistical analysis, and sophisticated
Rigorous
organizational development models
We take pride in "going the extra mile" to
Client-Centered ensure that change initiated becomes change
sustained
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22. Partial Client List
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23. Human Capital Strategy
The International Division of a global pharmaceutical company asked WLH to help
it create and deploy a human capital strategy aimed at attracting, developing, and
retaining the best managers and employees in its various country markets:
Defined and validated the key leadership capabilities to support its new mission and
strategic objectives.
Launched a talent planning process to target specific candidates for development.
Turned capabilities into a 360°Developmental Planning and Feedback Process.
Created innovative, intense discovery-based workshops to train managers to accelerate
development of these capabilities.
Created learning modules (print, CD-ROM. Web-based) to strengthen leadership
capabilities at the team level and linked them to improved business performance.
Implemented retention strategies to keep high-potential managers.
Created metrics to gauge success of the talent planning initiative.
Developed learning curriculum aligned to capability model.
Created Development Planning Guides to support the ability of managers and
colleagues to identify developmental needs and match meaningful learning approaches.
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24. Human Capital Strategy Projects
Customized Learning Programs:
Rx for Retention: designed a training program for
managers to identify “at risk colleague departure” and
strategies to retain talent
High Performers Workshop: designed and delivered a
one-day program to support a manager’s ability to:
‒ Share feedback on strengths and opportunities for development
‒ Support the creation of Individual Development Plans
‒ Coach direct reports to achieve career and development goals
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25. Leader-Led Learning
WLH partnered with a major pharmaceutical company to transform leadership
capabilities development into an easy, practical process that line leaders could
use to produce immediate, visible improvement in business unit effectiveness.
Provided a flexible, easily accessible range of activities designed to “push” the
practice of leadership competencies down into business units so that they become a
“way of life” and are the preferred approach for meeting business objectives.
Created a Manager’s Toolkit to accelerate practice of the leadership capabilities:
– Learning activities in each of the modules focus on specific leadership behaviors.
– Modules are designed to specifically reinforce corporate strategy.
– Assessment checklists created for line managers to quickly and accurately
identify which of the leadership behaviors they wanted to concentrate on
developing with their work teams in order to improve performance.
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