5 Ways HR Departments Can Better Support Employees

A human resources department is one of the most valuable departments any business has. This is because human resources departments work with one of an organization’s most valuable assets, its employees. The list below is designed to help human resources departments by outlining five of the most effective ways HR departments can better support employees.

1. Career Planning

As a human resources expert, you know that a business is only as good as its employees. A business’s most valuable employees are likely to have one thing in common. They are not only concerned with the job at hand but are also thinking about their future jobs. As a member of an HR department, your role is to help staff to continue developing in their careers. Ideally, you will want to help employees to excel internally, so your business can benefit from retaining talented staff members. However, it is not always possible for a business to promote all staff internally. Whether or not an internal promotion is possible, you should be available to help employees plan their future careers.

HR staff that are available to help employees with career planning are not only working for the future. Some of the effects of offering career planning will be felt immediately. For example, you will identify areas which employees need to work on in order to be able to reach their career goals. When a new vacancy arises, you will have all the information you need to find the best internal candidate.

2. Personal Finances

As a member of an HR department, you need to ensure that employees have all the information they need to succeed in life, and this includes information relating to personal finances. You should ensure that employees are up to date on important information regarding holidays, sick pay, and salaries.

HR departments also need to ensure that employees are informed about their pensions. Research has found that many employees know little to nothing about the details of their pensions. HR staff should safeguard employees by making sure they have all the information they need relating to their pensions. It can be difficult for HR team members to understand how to engage employees about their pensions. It is vital that HR staff are fully briefed and informed before talking to staff about their pensions.

3. Become a Safe Space

As an HR department, you should be ready in case an employee needs to come and speak to you regarding a sensitive topic. You need to have a protocol in place to ensure that you are always prepared to appropriately handle any type of situation. Having an established protocol means that no matter how difficult the situation, employees are always being safeguarded and protected. You should ensure that all members of your HR department are aware of your protocol and are following guidelines at all times. It is important that all HR departments ensure they are a safe space, even if they do not perceive there to be any pressing need.

4. Track Employee Engagement

Employee engagement refers to the extent to which an employee feels absorbed in and enthusiastic about their work. Employee engagement extends beyond the immediate relationship between an employee and their work. An engaged employee will go above and beyond to further the interests of the organization that they are working for. The levels of employee engagement within your organization can have several impacts, such as increasing worker wellbeing and productivity levels.

Human resources departments should work with line managers to track levels of employee engagement. Tracking levels of employee engagement will help you to identify which employees are flourishing in their current positions and which require a little more attention. One of the easiest ways to track employee engagement is to use employee engagement software. It is also useful for HR departments to track levels of engagement with potential employees too. This enables HR departments to identify and hire the most appropriate candidate for a position.

5. Support Employee Wellbeing

It will not come as a shock to anyone that happier and healthier employees are more productive and efficient than unhappy, unhealthy employees. Your human resources department should try to support employee wellbeing in any way that it can. There are many ways that HR departments can help to encourage and support employee wellbeing within an organization. For example:

• Encourage communication to decrease stress
• Help employees maintain a healthy work-life balance
• Encourage healthy eating and exercise
• Check-in with staff regularly

Happier staff are more productive, have a better relationship with their colleagues and the organization that they are working for. As a member of an HR department, you are in a position to help encourage worker wellbeing. This means that you are helping the business you are working for by better supporting its employees.