How To Build a One Page HR Plan for Your Business

​How long has it been since you really thought hard about your current approach to HR management and how it can contribute to the ongoing performance and success of your business?

Putting in place a simple HR plan should be one of the key planks for success for any business large or small. Left neglected and you may be dealing with preventable compliance issues, staff retention problems and/or a lack of accountability – leading to the business falling off the pace very quickly.

Employment Innovations has developed a  One Page HR Plan that any business can put in place, even without in-house HR expertise.

We cover the 7 steps for developing a One Page HR plan for your business:

1. Measure the initial state of HR with key metrics
2. Identify HR priorities aligned with business goals
3. Identify HR priorities to improve the health of HR
4. Embed lean HR principles into the plan
5. Define the ideal future state of HR with key metrics
6. Assign resources for execution
7. Review regularly

Step 1: Measure the initial state of HR with key metrics

Establishing key HR metrics at this step of the HR planning process has two main objectives – looking back over the most recent period (typically the last 12 months) to see if any numbers are telling a tale in regard to where we need to focus our attention and secondly, providing a base point upon which we intend for our future HR interventions to demonstrate business value (typically over the next 12 months).

The risks lie in measuring the wrong things and focusing on the inconsequential many and not the consequential few. Essentially it is what you do with the data that really matters.

Step 2: Identify HR priorities aligned with business goals

A successful HR plan should ideally be linked to any overall business objectives and strategies. At the highest level in the business, strategic goals are set, and then those goals cascade down throughout the rest of the business, including HR, to help guide team and individual-level priorities. Every level in the business should ideally set goals that ladder up into the level above them, creating overall alignment.

Step 3: Identify HR priorities to improve the health of HR

It is also important to reflect on what is currently done well, but more importantly what can be improved in the way you manage HR in your business. HR priorities should be identified from those that are the weakest with the biggest potential to impact overall compliance and productivity. Do not set yourself a list that is too complex – just focus on what you have the capacity to improve in the period you set yourself.

 Step 4: Embed lean HR principles in the plan

We advocate a lean approach to managing HR. Lean HR acknowledges that line managers can absorb many HR responsibilities and play a key role in talent management with access to the right tools, training and expertise. The 8 lean HR principles are:

1. We use self-service cloud HR software to simplify HR management and administration.
2. We have access to HR expertise in order for our managers to make better and faster decisions.
3. We provide the HR tool for our managers to ensure role clarity, drive the right behaviours, manage performance and develop our employees.
4.  We have genuine coaching and career conversations between managers and employees.
5. We measure employee happiness and collect feedback regularly to increase engagement.
6. We can reasonably predict turnover which minimises our time to hire.
7. We set goals across the business (including HR) aligned with company objectives.
8. We take a continuous improvement approach to the health of HR in the business.

Step 5: Define the ideal future state of HR with key metrics

Set some realistic targets for those key HR metrics identified at step one. As a rule of thumb in the absence of any benchmarking data (which can be very hard to find), for high priority HR metrics we should be setting targets up to 50% above the current state. For lower priority HR metrics a goal of up to 20% improvement may be more reasonable.

Step 6: Assign resources for execution

Questions you will need to ask yourself include whether HR priorities can be executed externally or internally – and if so, what resources are available in the business for its design and implementation.

Step 7: Review regularly

Schedule check-ins on your HR plan at least quarterly by reviewing the status of any HR priorities and collect feedback from key stakeholders.

​Interested to learn more?

Join our CEO, Shane Duffy, and Head of HR, Alana Giddy, as they dive into the steps towards building out a One Page HR Plan – from running an HR Health Check, identifying key HR metrics, aligning and prioritising HR objectives, embedding Lean HR principles and assigning resources for execution. They will also discuss some real examples of SMEs putting their One Page HR Plan into action.

Learn their secrets at this must-see session.

About Employment Innovations

Employment Innovations is one of Australia’s leading providers of employment services designed to increase productivity and ensure compliance. Its services and solutions include all the tools that every Australian small to medium sized employer needs – including workplace advice, legal services, payroll solutions, migration, human resource management and HR software.

Disclaimer

The information provided in these blog articles is general in nature and is not intended to substitute for professional advice. If you are unsure about how this information applies to your specific situation we recommend you contact Employment Innovations for advice.