What is the number one competency that all HR Business Partners need?

When I did my MSc in Coaching and Behavioural Science with Henley Business School in 2015, my subject was The move from HR Operational to HR Strategic — is the coaching competency an integral requirement? I know it was a bit of a mouthful!

Confident that coaching was, as that is why I had spent the last three years studying the science of coaching, I interviewed 18 CHRO’s in US Multi-nationals and to my dismay do you know what I learnt?

Coaching was not the main competency being referred to — but Business Acumen!

I was recently reminded of how important business acumen is when thinking about the Future of Work and I started to re-examine how would I describe business acumen:

I identified three key areas that are critical for the success of a HR Business Partner

**** Global Market Context — understanding what is happening in the market that is currently affecting your organisation or might have an impact in the near future and develop a comprehensive awareness of the macroeconomic and social factors affecting your industry.

**** Customer Segment — understanding the organisation’s products or services including who is the end customer and understanding thoroughly if your company’s policies and activities are aligned to your customer.

**** Strategy Creation Partnership — Ensuring that HR is involved in the organisations policy and decision making conversations and together with Business Leaders co-creating the business strategy.

The Global Pandemic has cemented and demonstrated the need for HR Professionals to be part of the corporate strategy discussions. Proving again the key requirement for HR Professionals need to understand the business.

This is crucial knowledge for HR Professionals just starting their career through to those at the highest level, however, the knowledge and competencies will depend on your specific role and career level.

The question you need to reflect on, is how well does your business acumen knowledge translate to the work you do?

Here are a couple of questions for you to think about and reflect on how easy did you find them to answer:

Ø Can you clearly articulate what the organization does and why it exists to a person outside of your organisation?

Ø Without running any reports what at the top 10 people metrics you can articulate that are current and relevant to the success of the organisation?

Ø What is the biggest industry risk your organisation is facing today?

Ø Who is your organisations competitors, not just today’s but potential future ones?

Ø What is the biggest global risk your organisation is facing today?

Ø What is the changing trends of your organisation customers?

No matter how well you are able to answer these questions it is never too late to develop further your business acumen and I have identified five valuable strategies:

1. Build a deep understanding of the business

Some helpful questions to have answers for would be:

· What are the biggest priorities and concerns of your Leadership team?

· Who is your organisations biggest client or customer and why do they use your service or product?

· Which product or service is the most profitable, and why?

· If applicable how is the share price performing?

· What was the revenue and profit for the previous financial year?

· How do the people metrics contribute to the business planning process?

Understanding your organisation will help you translate your human resource management activities, processes, and outcomes to impact on the organization’s bottom line.

2. Understand deeply the (desired) customer base

Knowing who your end-customers are is going to help you empower your organization’s workforce to serve your customers in the best possible way.

Develop a knowledge of your customer so that you can articulate:

· Who the target customer is

· What they are looking for

· What their biggest challenge or pain point is

· Who your organisations main competitors are

· What your point of difference is

· How HR can help position the organization to better serve its customers, increase the value provided and drive profits

3. Develop knowledge of common management theories and understand how to apply them

Increase your awareness of how a manager’s decisions impact others and the wider company and develop an awareness of the impact it would have on the broader needs of the organization.

This is about recognising how each decision is connected and will work towards a greater purpose and which ultimately improves the financial results.

4. Continuously educate yourself

Learning shouldn’t stop. Put this into practice by continually reading books, listening to podcasts, reading HR magazines and articles, taking courses, and participating in relevant industry events. This is a must for anyone at the start of their HR career and it’s a great habit to continue with as you advance. Remember though to seek out the right education. For example, many books are outdated and don’t reflect what HR looks like today and how it’s rapidly evolving.

5. Don’t be afraid to ask questions

Get into the habit of asking questions often, regardless of where you are in your career. Don’t be afraid to say if you don’t understand something or need it explained again or differently. This is how we learn and grow. Asking questions will deepen your knowledge and understanding and will provide different perspectives on issues and potential solutions.

Remember that building your competency in business acumen is a process that never ends and when HR professionals fully understand how the business works and speak the language of the leaders, they substantially impact business results. Which adds incredible value to the organization's profit and increases competitiveness.

When you as an HR Professional fully understand the organization’s goals, values and mission, your understanding of what is needed evolve. You will become more confident in taking action and implementing change. Which in turn earns you the credibility and the trust of the senior leadership team!

I would welcome to hear what has worked for you in developing your business acumen.