Just how important has value for money been to your organisation during the trying economic circumstances we've seen in 2011? Helen Wakefield - the author of today's guest post - has first-hand experience of dealing with the increasing centrality of value for money and return on investment to many employers in 2011.
Helen Wakefield, is Co-Director of Windmills in Formby, Merseyside, which specialises in "researching issues of personal development and devising practical resources to realise the potential of individuals and organisations". You can connect with her via LinkedIn.
Helen Wakefield: My Year in HR
'Value for money.' This phrase has never been so widely used as it has been in 2011. These days the return on investment has to be quite remarkable for an HR Director to agree to commission a piece of work, so 'why should we do this?' and how much will it cost?' are two quite critical questions.
Back at one point, cost - whilst somewhat of an issue - was not the most crucial factor concerning large organisations who were regularly used to commissioning projects out of significant L&D budgets. Now, however, there is, quite rightly a strong need to prove that an investment will be worthwhile and to show a return for that investment.
Our experience shows that now organisations tend to fall into two camps. Some people believe quite ardently that they have to 'invest to save' - investing in order to make savings further down the line. Others believe just as firmly that they just need to make cuts - and that cutting can be quite indiscriminate.
But some companies are bucking the trend.
This year we had one client who, despite the hard economic times, felt
it was vital that his executive team were given the coaching they needed
to really explore what their personal value was and where it lay within
the organisation.
Another client was quite unusual in offering his staff the opportunity to explore where their own set of skills and talents were, and where they were being used both inside and outside of the firm. He took a brave step in allowing people to explore that at a time when his nose must have been pressed very firmly to the grindstone as his organisation went through a period of expansion.
Other organisations have brought us in this year because they have gone through periods of negative change, which have involved redundancies. In cases such as those, helping people to maximise their potential has been vital in terms of supporting retained staff and still achieving the newly reshaped business objectives.
But for many other organisations, buying in consultative support is not an option. Instead, they are looking at long-term sustainable ways to realise the investment they are making.
If one thing is certain, it is that HR and L&D practitioners have to be able to convince Financial Directors of the value of investing in their own people. Otherwise they may find those experienced employees migrating to a rival organisation where they do feel valued.
Another client was quite unusual in offering his staff the opportunity to explore where their own set of skills and talents were, and where they were being used both inside and outside of the firm. He took a brave step in allowing people to explore that at a time when his nose must have been pressed very firmly to the grindstone as his organisation went through a period of expansion.
Other organisations have brought us in this year because they have gone through periods of negative change, which have involved redundancies. In cases such as those, helping people to maximise their potential has been vital in terms of supporting retained staff and still achieving the newly reshaped business objectives.
But for many other organisations, buying in consultative support is not an option. Instead, they are looking at long-term sustainable ways to realise the investment they are making.
If one thing is certain, it is that HR and L&D practitioners have to be able to convince Financial Directors of the value of investing in their own people. Otherwise they may find those experienced employees migrating to a rival organisation where they do feel valued.
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