A study by MIT’s Sloan Institute suggests that a majority of leaders are expecting   “great” industry disruption through technological advantages. However, only a small percentage of executives felt that their organizations were prepared to handle disruptions. In this dynamic environment, organizations are under immense pressure to develop the right digital capabilities wherein organization’s operations, people, culture, and structure are in sync and aligned with the business goals and overarching strategy.

Digital HR is bringing many innovations in the field of people management. And preparation needs to extend- from aligning systems and processes with the technology to equipping the workforce with the right digital capabilities. 

It is critical that HR tech transformations are aligned with overarching organizational goals and strategies

Here’s a look at some of the aspects to prepare for HR tech transformation:

1.    Developing a digital leadership mindset: A study examining more than 400 companies worldwide found out that digital leaders are a key factor in any company’s success. The Management Agenda survey found that the majority of leaders believed that in the future their organization would need to either develop or recruit leaders with fresh leadership skills who are more digitally inclined.  New digital technologies like cloud, big data analytics, mobility and social networks are making it mandatory for leaders to possess a completely new set of skills. McKinsey has in fact developed a simple metric called as ‘Digital Quotient’ to measure the digital maturity. However, along with the skills, a fresh ‘mindset’ is required to embrace and drive digital transformation. 

Here’s how an organization can help develop the mindset:

•    Encourage leaders to invest time in reading and networking to learn about what others are doing in the digital space. Request them to ask as many questions to remove doubts and build powerful insights.
•    Provide opportunities to learn about technology- talks, seminars, coaching, reverse mentoring, etc. can prove to be useful.
•    Develop an ability to visualize the big picture when it comes to technology. Ensure if a new technology is aligned with the business goals and serves the core business purpose. The technology should have the ability to impact the bottom line directly.
•    Organize open sessions on technology so that people can exchange thoughts, and develop powerful insights out of it.

2.    Enable and support talent:  Once leaders are groomed to take on the digital world, it is important to make the sure all the employees are trained with the same skills and mindset. Skills such as listening, analytical thinking, communication, etc., are becoming increasingly critical to thrive in the digital world.  Organizations can train their resources to learn these skills or also a fresh recruitment approach can be chalked out to recruit talent who already possess such skills.

3.    Align HR tech transformation with organizational strategy: HR leaders need to step up and drive tech transformations in a way that is aligned with organizational strategies and directly support business objectives. Contemplate and discuss the measurable benefits/ROI of any system before launching the same and always keep key stakeholders informed. Regular check-in with business leaders and interactions across the function will help align your transformation journey with the organization’s needs.

4.    Innovate with systems and processes: The key word here is to innovate. Bring innovations in the domain of entire employment lifecycle; launch fact-based programs, processes and HR service delivery improvements and develop new ways to gauge its performance. Apply design thinking principles and come up with more innovative systems which improve efficiency and effectiveness. Innovations can be further boosted, and transformations can be made smoother by recognizing and rewarding people who facilitate and support transformations by easily adopting the new, tech-based systems and processes and also help others.

5.    Learn from the best practices: Develop a fresh perspective by visiting other companies to see what they are doing differently and innovatively. Invite outside speakers and experts to share their viewpoints. Learn from the best and adopt practices which suit your organization. Refrain from blindly following and adopting what others are doing.

People are usually resistant towards embracing the change. Clear and timely communication about the change would help remove doubts and instill a sense of trust. Similarly, when an organization plans to launch a new technology which has a wide-spread impact, it is organization’s duty to take its people in confidence and communicate the core purpose. Discuss benefits associated with this launch and also mention about possible pitfalls it may have. 

Any big transformation brings with its fair share of discomfort and trepidations, however, with good planning and by focusing on certain tangible and intangible aspects, such transformations can be smoothly dealt with.