Develop an Agile HR Strategic Plan That Achieves Organizational Objectives
Use foresight to become the HR department that the business needs.
Situation: HR has to do more with less and has trouble articulating its value to the business because it is misaligned with business strategy, does not know how to track its progress, or both.
Complication: Designing an HR strategic plan is an initial time investment; translating organizational objectives into HR initiatives requires new and different skillsets.
Resolution: McLean & Company’s five-step process will guide you through creating a robust and agile plan that will provide the overarching structure for your plan but allow initiatives and actions to change with business needs.
Need Extra Help?
Speak With An Analyst.
- Get on-demand project support
- Get advice, coaching, and insight at key project milestones
- Go through a Guided Implementation to help you get through your project
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- CEOs consistently are disappointed with how HR is performing, but HR is stuck in firefighting mode so it cannot provide the value that business leaders want. Be prepared to make the time investment in a robust and agile HR strategy now that is nimble enough to change later, which means you can address business objectives head on in the future using your HR strategy to structure your responses.
Impact and Result
- Develop an HR strategic plan that is aligned with business goals.
- Develop an HR strategic plan that is agile and provides a framework and structure to work under so you can address changing business objectives.
- Develop an HR strategic plan that allows the HR function to grow in efficiency so that HR professionals become more focused on innovative HR solutions to business problems.
Workshop: Develop an Agile HR Strategic Plan That Achieves Organizational Objectives
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Make the Case and Develop Desired State
The Purpose
- Understand the facts behind why an HR strategy is necessary.
- Comprehend the value that an HR strategy can provide to the organization.
- Develop an idea of what your ideal HR department looks like.
- Strategize HR initiatives developed directly from business goals and objectives.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Stakeholder support for developing an HR strategy.
- A visualization of what your HR department needs to look like and do in order to provide business value.
Activities
Outputs
Make the case understanding
SWOT analysis
- List of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that HR needs to take into account (SWOT).
Goals cascade
- List of initiatives that are directly linked to organizational goals (Goals cascade).
Desired state HR CPPT analysis
- Description of the ideal HR department that provides value in their organization (CPPT).
Module 2: Assess Current State, and Prioritize and Develop Strategy
The Purpose
- Understand what the HR department currently looks like.
- Determine what initiatives are currently being done.
- Conduct gap analysis to determine what HR needs to do to improve the department.
- Prioritize all initiatives (business-driven, HR-driven, and current) to identify which provide the most value.
- Develop the HR strategy (by documenting the outcome of previous deliverables).
Key Benefits Achieved
- A visualization of where the HR department currently stands.
- A list of initiatives required to move the HR department from the current to desired state.
- Prioritized list of initiatives that provide the most business value.
- Business case built for prioritized initiatives to achieve stakeholder buy-in.
Activities
Outputs
Prioritization tool
- List of prioritized initiatives (Prioritization tool).
Start, stop, continue
Timeline SSC activity
HR strategy template
- HR strategy.
Business case activity
- Business case for each initiative.
Module 3: Execute Strategy and Evaluate Progress
The Purpose
- Execute the strategy with stakeholders on board.
- Track progress.
- Set up maintenance plan.
Key Benefits Achieved
- An executed strategy.
- A plan for maintenance and improvement.
- A scorecard to benchmark results and track progress.
Activities
Outputs
HR Scorecard
- Metrics tracking abilities for each initiative that are stored in one central area.
- A maintenance plan to adjust the initiatives based on business strategy.
- A communication plan to meet with stakeholders to ensure their continued support and to elicit their feedback on how to make the strategy more supportive of organizational goals.
About McLean & Company
McLean & Company is an HR research and advisory firm providing practical solutions to human resources challenges via executable research, tools, diagnostics, and advisory services that have a clear and measurable impact on your business.
What Is a Blueprint?
A blueprint is designed to be a roadmap, containing a methodology and the tools and templates you need to solve your HR problems.
Each blueprint can be accompanied by a Guided Implementation that provides you access to our world-class analysts to help you get through the project.
Need Extra Help?
Speak With An Analyst
Get the help you need in this 3-phase advisory process. You'll receive 6 touchpoints with our researchers, all included in your membership.
Guided Implementation 1: Make the case and develop desired state
- Call 1: Discuss making the case.
- Call 2: Review tools and templates completed during second step.
Guided Implementation 2: Assess and develop strategy
- Call 1: Review tools and templates completed during current state assessment.
- Call 2: Identify prioritized initiatives and review how the strategic plan template is filled out.
Guided Implementation 3: Execute and evaluate
- Call 1: Discuss preparedness for strategy execution.
- Call 2: Post-evaluation discussion of HR scorecard and adjustments to plan based on business objective changes.
Contributors
- Professor James Baron, William S. Beinecke Professor of Management, Yale School of Management
- Manny Campione, HR Business Partner, LoyaltyOne
- Cindy Dopson, Director of HR, British Columbia (BC) Cancer Foundation
- Bryan Gilleland, VP of HR and Corporate Planning, Frankenmuth Mutual Insurance Company
- Kevin Grossman, Marketing Director, Peoplefluent
- JD Lester, Director of HR and Administration, Texas Windstorm Insurance Association
- Kevin Mason, Head of Business Development, Genesis HR Solutions
- Jessica Phinn, VP of People and Engagement, Nelson Education Ltd.
- Tim Sackett, President, HRU Technical Resources
- Michelle M. Smith, VP of Business Development, O.C. Tanner
- Ron Thomas, CEO, Great Place to Work – Gulf Countries [Dubai]
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