In our recent ‘Future of HR 2020’ study, we looked at how HR departments around the world are shaping organizations ready to take on the future.
KPMG professionals gathered information from more than 1,300 HR executives in the field and discovered that a small percentage of HR departments shared four defining characteristics. These can be observed in the actions of HR executives and heads of department, and can affect the identity of an entire organization.
We call departments that exhibit these characteristics “Pathfinding HR”.
In KPMG member firms' experience, it’s better to have all four of these Pathfinding HR qualities balanced against each other. It’s a common tendency for companies to focus on just one or two elements, while neglecting the others, which could lead to wasted resources and frustrated outcomes.
Pathfinding HR teams view themselves as value-drivers to the organization. They’re confident in their ability to attract and retain the best talent, and they have successfully balanced all four characteristics. Developing these traits can take time and effort, but in our experience of helping organizations to transform with KPMG Powered Enterprise, there are three things you need to get right first in order to give your business the best chance of success.
Pathfinding HR departments are defined by having all four traits as one integrated and holistic entity. In our ‘Future of HR 2020’ survey, only 10% of respondents qualified for this category. The majority of participants (80%) worked within departments we categorized as “Searching”. These displayed a couple of the necessary qualities, but were lacking the full set. The remaining 10% were simply “Disconnected”.
In an increasingly agile world, we recommend that an HR department aspiring to develop its Pathfinding traits should progress against all four fronts simultaneously, on an incremental and persistent basis.
The task is not to be underestimated, but in our experience of working with organizations that have successfully made the change, KPMG member firms found it’s vital to start from a strong foundation. That’s why incorporating these three cornerstones of success is important at an early stage.
To start developing your HR department, get in touch. We’d be delighted to show you what your future state could look like. KPMG Powered Enterprise can provide you with the technology, a target operating model and access to experienced KPMG transformation professionals. Working together, we can shape an organization that acts with agility, insight and success.