The importance of HR policies and procedures in the organisation
HR policies are implemented in businesses to provide guidance to employees and leaders on their role and responsibilities, summarising the dos and don’ts in the workplace. They act as an intermediary between the employee and their leadership or between employees. Another purpose of human resources policies and procedures is to guide and encourage positive behaviours. They aim to enhance the written employment contract and form the base of the company’s culture. A first step towards understanding the impact of human resources policies on employees is to look at the roles and responsibilities of human resources in small businesses. This will shed some light on the wider scope of human resources management and its influence on the overall business.
Human resources roles and responsibilities
Human resources is even more important in a small or medium-sized business, as it acts as the front line for recruitment and plays a key role in the company culture. Human resources responsibilities in the small business touch many areas, from strategic planning to recruitment, company culture and even company image. They contribute to enhancing the employees’ experience while ensuring strong business operations. Below is a list of human resources involvement and influence on the business.
Structure of the organisation
HR policies and procedures are at the heart of the relationship between employee and employer. They set expectations for appropriate behaviours in the workplace. This includes behaviours around employment law, work schedules, work flexibility, health and safety measures as well as conflict resolution and disciplinary actions. They drive employee behaviours and assist with monitoring performance. They also help to create a suitable work environment.
Leadership guidance
The Human Resources department plays a key role in strategic management. This is particularly the case as its staff have an understanding of how human behaviour affects performance. HR representatives participate in senior leadership meetings and take part in decision-making processes relating to engagement, recruitment and employee development. HR procedures set some of the roles and responsibilities for leaders in the organisation, too. Their scope of authority should be clear and the HR policy should support the maintenance of discipline in the workplace.
Salaries and compensation
Human resource policies set the structure for wages and even banding levels within the organisation. This ensures not only that fair wages are applied based on experience, skillset and responsibilities, but also that the company remains competitive compared to other businesses. This means that they have an impact on the organisation’s finances, too.
Fairness in the workplace
As they represent all of the employees, the human resources team has a duty of fairness to all. They must administer the company’s HR policies with equal treatment to all employees. In disciplinary actions, for example, HR must display fairness and recommendations based on facts rather than emotions.
Legal issues
Legal issues involving employees are part of the scope of human resources work. HR policies and procedures provide guidance to employees on their rights as well as their responsibilities. Employees should be informed about what constitutes non-compliant behaviour, including non-discrimination policies.
Risk management
It is the company’s responsibility to ensure that the work environment is safe for employees. In small and medium-sized businesses, HR engages with employees to ensure that they are aware of safety measures. The HR team contributes to increasing awareness of safety policies and safe behaviours.
Employee development
Human resources staff are responsible for shaping the framework for employee training and development. As such, they contribute to the company’s performance. They set the scene for career opportunities in the business and therefore have an impact on employee engagement and progression.
Employee engagement
Companies with strong employee engagement deliver better performances. The morale and overall satisfaction of the company’s staff has an influence on their behaviour at work, their engagement and ultimately their performance. HR plays a key role in employee engagement. They are ambassadors for the desired company culture. They are also responsible for employee satisfaction surveys and seeking feedback on job satisfaction.
Recruitment process and new employee onboarding
The recruitment process is the responsibility of HR in small and medium businesses. They define the most suitable method of recruitment. HR representatives, in collaboration with the hiring leader, manage the process, from screening to scheduling interviews, all the way through to employee onboarding. The above is a non-exhaustive list of the roles played by human resources in various aspects of the work of small and medium-sized businesses. It aims to highlight the broadness of their scope of work and the key part they play in an organisation.
The impact of HR policies on employee attitude and performance
As seen in the section above, human resources and any associated policies they work with play a big part in small and medium businesses. The main objective of human resources management is to have a positive impact on employee performance and thus drive business success. However, there is a multidimensional link between HR policies, employee attitude and performance. It is critical for human resources policies to be created, deployed and communicated in the best manner possible reflecting the company’s culture. Owners of small and medium-sized businesses are fully aware that a lack of employee engagement can cause severe damage to an organisation’s efficiency and success. With the example of employee engagement, we will explore some opportunities for HR and HR policies to have a positive influence on employee attitude and performance.
Regular communication
Keeping employees informed makes them feel valued. Make sure that you issue regular communications aimed at all employees as well as specific groups. These communications can be on various topics, such as changes to your HR policies, recruitment of a new employee or even someone’s birthday. The objective is to keep colleagues connected and feeling that they are part of a team.
Encourage feedback
Employee satisfaction surveys are the most common way to collect feedback from employees. Beyond just collecting this feedback, it is important to ensure that employees feel heard and that necessary actions are taken to improve their well-being.
Care about well-being
Engage For Success (E4S), a movement promoting employee engagement in the UK, is adamant that employee engagement and well-being are interdependent. Implementing initiatives that contribute to employee well-being and engagement will have a positive impact on the business. As such, it is not only ethically sound but also economically valuable for an employer to invest in their employees’ physical and mental health.
Have a purpose
Living and breathing the company’s purpose will create engagement from employees, as they will feel involved in the company’s mission. To ensure that the company and employees have a clear vision and purpose, work with the leadership team and challenge yourself in terms of the existing HR policies.
Create empowering experiences
Get rid of micro-management as much as you can. Encourage people to work autonomously, guide them and work on their development. Employee creativity needs to be encouraged. This will generate enthusiasm and lead to improved performance.
Have regular recognition
Reward employees on a regular basis for their performance and dedication to the business. One way to do this is by introducing incentive schemes or reward programmes. Recognition cultivates the company culture, makes employees feel valued and ultimately has a positive impact on their performance.
Human resources professionals and policies have a wide scope of involvement within a business. Recruitment procedures, administration of policies, and leading employee engagement are all key responsibilities of HR representatives and should be reflected in HR policies. As advocates of the company culture, HR staff compliance with codes of conduct must be exemplary. As a general rule, when it comes to encouraging employee performance, the best approach is to step away from the traditional ‘control strategy’ and move towards an ‘engagement strategy’. Invest in employees and empower them so that they consciously or subconsciously deliver positive attitudes that will have a long-term positive impact on the company culture. Make employees feel valued to increase their commitment. The outcome should result in improved performance.
