Why should you listen to me when you can have 300 Leading HR Managers tell you what’s driving staff and store performance?
This past week, I had the opportunity to attend the Retail Council of Canada’s Human Resource Conference in Toronto. In addition to moderating a HR Leadership Panel, I took the time to listen to all of the speakers and talk with dozens of delegates. It was an amazing show, and it’s clear that this ‘ain’t your Grandma’s’ HR world anymore. Thank goodness for that!
I’ve listed below several of the main themes carried throughout the conference onstage and by the delegates. In almost all of them, notice how there is a constant drive towards performance.
- HR has moved away from the “tell me how you feel” days, and clearly into the “let’s get something done” world.
- HR knows math! OK, maybe not math, but there’s a clear move towards analytics and data to help support and make decisions.
- The world of retail is changing, and HR Departments are trying hard to keep up. It’s not always easy for everyone, but the reality is HR has to be as nimble and quick as the rest of the company.
- You don’t have to do it all yourself. Let’s face it, you only have so much knowledge and so many resources. Do what you do best, and contract out the rest! There are vast resources available to you in the vendor community that can help you get more done … faster!
- Take that binder and throw it out the window! Seriously, who reads those things today? There’s not just a movement, but a reality that exists, that most all training is moving out of the binders, out of the classroom, and is now firmly rooted in online and blended learning solutions.
- And finally, the biggest theme was that HR must be responsible for driving performance and held accountable for results.
This is the Golden Age for HR in retail. Staff is more important now than ever before. It’s up to the HR Leaders to deliver the tools, systems and programs necessary to allow your human capital to drive performance to the higher levels needed.
What are you waiting for?
