We’re ending a four part series on how Strategy, People and Processes affect your bottom line. Today we’re going to talk about how execution affects your bottom line. Unless your business is totally automated with robotics, it will be people executing your business plan.
There will come a time when your business may struggle to hire, train and retain the top talent in your field. So, I’d like to spend some time talking about the human resources element and why it’s important to align your HR strategy with your business strategy to maximize execution.
Many times the importance of HR is left to the CFO of the organization, but at some point in time business owners will find an HR expert as an outsource solution or may hire a full time HR person to focus on these initiatives. Here are 4 particular ways HR can impact execution.
1) Hire and engage the right talent. To start, it’s important to find people in your organization who can help understand how newly hired employees are affecting the company. Ask these questions: How long do employees stay with your company? Why do employees stay or leave? How valuable is training? Knowing the answers to these questions will help you understand the execution impact on the company’s revenue and profit.
2) Invest in good leaders. Let’s face it, good leaders drive execution. It’s easy to see the connection between leadership and increased profits. The impact on execution is huge when leaders have clear vision they have a results-focused strategy and lead transformation.
3) Engage in competitive learning. As a business owner, you’re responsible for training your organization, but it’s important to focus your training on execution in a way that enhances your profitability. Your finance person will want to know how the training will impact your bottom line. Take time to reflect on this for any additional training you choose to implement.
4) Create a positive experience for employees too. A common phrase in today’s marketplace is to create a positive experience for customers. I say an owner needs to create a positive experience for employees too. A positive experience for employees spurs productivity and higher profitability because they’re engaged. Take some time to reflect on what kind of experience you’re creating for your employees and how it might impact execution.
To execute with a high level of efficiency and effectiveness, it may take a dedicated HR resource or person in your organization to focus on these things. It might make sense to reflect on how your organization is doing in these areas and what changes you might make to improve execution.
