The Helping Hand of HR KPI in a Company

Having HR KPI can assist any company in ensuring the productivity of its workforce. The indicators would show the management areas that need improvement, so that it can act accordingly.

The concept of HR KPI, or human resource key performance indicators, is not something new. The popularity of such can be attributed to the fact that taking note of key performance indicators is indeed very important in ensuring the overall success of any company. Regardless of size or tenure, key performance indicators are indeed needed.

What exactly are these key performance indicators? Let us place ourselves in the shoes of the employee first, so that we could have a better perspective of the concept. Now, a typical 8-hour job would give you particular demands and requirements to meet. At first, especially during the first few months at the job, meeting such demands and requirements would be fun enough for any employee.

But over time, the tasks and responsibilities entailed with the job could very well become tedious. With such tedium comes the possibility of your performance at the job dwindling as well. And if this tedium is not noticed or perceived early on, you just might be doing your company more harm than good. Without the presence of key performance indicators, you would definitely be doing your company more harm in the long run.

Key performance indicators basically focus on the performance of a certain company’s employees. Just to name a few, these indicators would include the employees’ initiative, teamwork, productivity, quality of work, job satisfaction, and many more. Measuring these aspects can help any company, particularly the management, gauge the company and how it is doing, as a whole. By examining, let’s say, the productivity indicator of the company, the management can then perceive for themselves how efficient the workforce is in this area.

But what the management is really after when employing these key performance indicators is determining which areas the company needs improving on. For instance, the indicators would show that a significant number of employees are not satisfied with their jobs and positions. This may be due to the inevitable tedium any employee would feel over time. Thus, the management can act accordingly and implement the appropriate changes to encourage the employees to perform better.

Encouragement would be the key concept here, so that the employees would once again feel that zest they once had when performing their tasks and responsibilities. If you look at human resource key performance indicators from this perspective, then it would totally make sense to have these implemented in any company or organization today. With these indicators, the management would be able to make more insightful and educated decisions pertaining to their workforce.

Other than that, HR KPI can also show the employees themselves their quantitative worth in the company. Aside from such measurements being encouraging, especially if the employee gets high marks, the indicators can also act as motivation. If you see that you need improvement on a certain task entailed in your job, wouldn’t you want to be informed? Being informed would mean that the management trusts that you have appreciation for constructive criticism, and that you have it in you to act accordingly and professionally. Thus, these indicators also promote both career and personal growth.

The Importance of Measuring HR Performance

HR performance is an aspect to be measured in ensuring the success of a company’s overall operations. Certain elements have to be considered when measuring this.

Measuring the productivity and performance of each and every department is necessary. There have been procedures developed and recommended in measuring these aspects when it comes to the effectiveness of a company’s management team. Such procedures have also been developed to measure the same when it comes to a company’s workforce.

But have you heard of such a system being used to measure HR performance? Yes, there is indeed such a need to measure this. Thus, there have also been procedures developed for this purpose.

First of all, it is important to recognize the fact that the HR department is very vital in the existence and overall success of a company. This is because this is the department that handles the hiring of the company’s premier assets: its workforce. Thus, it would make sense to measure the performance of this department in this aspect.

And this is just one of the many responsibilities the HR department carries out, you know. Thus, it would make further sense to have some sort of system set up to evaluate HR performance as a whole.

Now, there are certain elements, or what is known as indicators, that should be used in evaluating HR performance. The first of these would be, as expected, workforce productivity. It is important to take note here that productivity for one company can be completely different from that of another company. This is simply because companies have different goals, objectives, and purposes.

Still, there would be established measures that are common amongst companies. If workforce productivity is going strong, then it’s safe to say that HR performance is productive in this aspect.

Employee engagement is another aspect to keep in mind here. This pertains to the work relations between the employees themselves and the management. If this aspect scores high, then this would mean that the employees value their jobs. Just like workforce productivity, HR performance would score high if employees are satisfied with the jobs that they keep.

One way to know this is to hold surveys, so that the employees can express whatever thoughts they have about their jobs. You best look for answers wherein employees would say that they wake up and find themselves looking forward to another day at work.

Recruitment is also an aspect as well. If you think about it, recruitment is the most important job responsibility any HR department has. To check if HR performance is strong in this aspect, then the average performance appraisal scores of the employees should be monitored. If a company is consistently promoting its employees to higher positions and better opportunities, then HR performance is at an all-time high.

The last concept is employee retention. Turnover is something that no company wants to experience. However, this is quite inevitable in any company because there will always be better opportunities coming by for any employee in the workforce. There are also times when the company itself would decide against retaining some employees, especially the unproductive ones.

This is something any HR department wants to avoid. Thus, it is important for the HR department to hire only the productive ones as much as possible. If the retention rate in a company is high, then HR performance is also positive in this aspect.

HR advise: 10 easy steps for personal success in company

Personal success can only be achieved if a clear view of all goals is maintained. Follow these easy steps to unleash the power hidden inside you and transform your life into a success story.

1. You are valuable – If you want to be successful the first rule you should learn is to valorize yourself. Say this out loud: I am an important, valuable, intelligent and interesting individual that has a lot of to offer. Remember that you are in fact the most valuable asset you posses.

2. The first step – All great and little endeavours start with one small, first step. That first step represents the beginning of a journey and the motivation to start something that will yield positive results. Take these steps in all areas of your life and witness all the triumphs that will be achieved.

3. Be friendly – Be a good friend to yourself and others. Respect their opinions and benefit from the friendships that will blossom. Humans are social beings that require interactivity, creating strong relationships is very important and rewarding.

4. Be motivating – People are always looking for motivation and being able to motivate others is one of the most important steps towards personal success. If others see you as a potential source of motivation they will start to value your opinions and ideas.

5. Listen and learn – Listen to all advice given and learn from the mistakes of others. Many times the greatest teachings and techniques that will help you achieve your goals are given free of charge.

6. Stick to the plan – After developing a good solid plan stick to it no matter what. Don’t change the course after a few little setbacks. Stick to the plan and overcome the obstacles as they present themselves.

7. Success loves success – If you surround yourself with success others will follow. Start by rewarding yourself and celebrating your victories as they present themselves. When you become known as a successful person many other people will offer their services and ideas which can further develop other lucrative opportunities.

8. Dress for success – Like stated above, you are the most valuable asset you posses, so take the time to construct a solid image. Dress for success and demand the respect of others. People take less than two seconds to formulate an opinion about others.

9. Learn to say NO – To be a successful person many times you have to simply say no. knowing when to reject a proposal is an important lesson any successful person should learn. Don’t let others dictate every aspect of your life, say no when necessary.

10. Be the example – After reaching the desired personal success, transform yourself into the example to be followed. People admire strong role models and will always respect someone that possesses such positive traits.

It is my wish that every person reading these steps takes active control over all the aspects of their lives and benefit from the results. Remember that you are a valuable asset and success is the only path to follow.

Some Useful HR Metrics for Large Organizations

Now let’s talk about some useful HR metrics for large organizations, or criteria for measuring HR performance. Knowing about these metrics would help managers more accurately gauge their HR performance.

Management has grown to become more and more strategic and based on actual results and observations. To this end, the concept of metrics has been developed and applied with great success in many companies and organizations. Metrics, sometimes called measures, refers to particular standards which are used to gauge and communicate progress on different aspects of the business. These standards are quantitative, more often than not, and as such conveyed in numbers and percentages.

The adoption of this concept of metrics has helped to make managing an organization more objective and less vague. These metrics offer a structured and well-defined way of observing the progress and development of the organization’s various aspects. Decisions then become better-informed than before.

Not all metrics are going to be as useful for all organizations, however. Here we make a list of some of the most powerful HR metrics that are relatively easy to understand and implement.

First of all, the very best indicator of successful HR performance is workforce productivity. Productivity would not mean the same thing in different companies (and even in different departments within companies), but in any case there are already established measures of productivity that could be used. Some of the metrics to describe workforce productivity include the percentage improvement in workforce productivity and the currency value of this year’s increase in workforce productivity. Managers would of course seek to maximize these metrics.

Another important aspect of HR to measure is what is known as employee engagement. This refers to the relationship between employees and the management. High employee engagement would mean that employees tend to value their employment, and hence stay with the company as productive members. The metrics in this category take the form of employee survey results that can gauge employee satisfaction. For instance, the percentage of employees who look forward to coming to work is a useful metric, as is the percentage that feels comfortable with current management practices.

Recruitment is, of course, one of the main responsibilities of any HR department. To assess the effectiveness of recruiting, these simple metrics may be used. One is the average performance appraisal score of newly hired employees, which may then be compared to preceding years’ results for the same position. Another is management satisfaction with these new employees, determined through surveys. The turnover rate of these new employees within the first year is also usually a good metric to take note of.

Finally, employee retention is another aspect of the business that HR should be well aware of. Useful metrics in this category include a performance-based turnover metric, especially in important positions. This is a weighted measure of turnover, with better performers being ranked as more important that worse performers. Management satisfaction with HR efforts with regards to employee retention, determined through surveys, may also be a somewhat useful metric to monitor.

These are just some of the simpler and more important metrics to consider when gauging HR performance. More sophisticated HR metrics are available and may also help, but implementing even just these simple ones is sure to make a big difference.

Some HR KPI (Key Performance Indicators)

This article discusses some of the most useful HR KPI, or key performance indicators. These are measurable quantities which help to gauge how well the organization is performing, and can help to guide management decisions.

Management has become more and more fact-based, over the years, as managers saw the benefits of having accurate and relevant information on which to base their decisions. Hence the concept of KPIs or key performance indicators developed naturally as an extension and distillation of the fact-based management approach.

HR KPI would then refer to those indicators which look at the employees’ performance. These indicators would encompass the employees’ productivity, job satisfaction, initiative, work quality, teamwork, and so on. Looking at various KPIs would allow management to quickly and accurately gauge how the organization is doing, as a whole, and thus allow for insightful decisions and management choices.

HR KPI could also help the employees themselves to get a quantitative grasp on their performance and what aspects they need to improve upon. The consideration of these key performance indicators is basically just a way to keep track of the important aspects of organizational (as well as personal employee) performance. Employees could use these benchmarks to try and better their personal performance.

Groups and teams would also benefit from being able to look at and quantitatively measure not only individual member performance, but also their performance as a unit. This would enable the group to make adjustments both at the individual level as well as at the group level to further improve their performance (and hence their value to the company).

An awareness and understanding of these key performance indicators thus helps at almost every level of the company or organization. It becomes important to select the proper aspects of the organization to monitor, and the metrics or standards of measurement by which to gauge these aspects.

Some of the most important HR KPI’s are those related to workforce productivity. The exact meaning of productivity is of course dependent on the context of evaluation. Generally, the improvement of employee productivity over previous time periods is what is important to monitor and maintain. There is of course no absolute comparison for productivity, and this is why changes and improvements are what are measured.

Recruitment is another vital HR aspect to be aware of. Indicators here include comparisons between the average appraisal results of newly hired employees with the previous batch of hires. Better recruitment would of course result in hires that are better appraised than previous batches, and so on. An improving quality of new hires would result in better performing employees to fill the positions in the organization.

Employee retention is also another important aspect. Key performance indicators in this regard would consist of a weighted turnover rate. This rate could be weighted based on employee performance, with top performers being the weightiest. Lowering this turnover rate should be of high priority; any organization would want to keep its top performers within its ranks.

These are just some of the HR KPI’s that an organization manager could consider. By keeping track of these and other key performance indicators, management would be able to determine what decisions and adjustments need to be made.

Designing for the HR Scorecard Approach

This article discusses the basic concepts behind the balanced scorecard approach, especially in relation to HR management, and how scorecard design and implementation should be based on a sound strategic map.

The balanced scorecard represents a concise distillation of a useful strategic management concept. It was introduced in the nineties by Kaplan and Norton in response to the previously existing management approaches that they felt leaned too heavily towards the financial aspects of the business. They termed their new approach ‘balanced’ to emphasize that there are other aspects of any organization that need to be considered as well, if management is going to get the whole picture.

This approach can be termed fact-based management, where the gathering of accurate and relevant information becomes crucial. It is on the basis of this information that management could then make better decisions, both for the short term and the long term.

The balanced scorecard approach espouses the consideration of four basic perspectives. Each of these perspectives have their corresponding metrics, which are the standards by which performance can be measured quantitatively. By analyzing these measurements, improvement goals can then be set and attained quantitatively.

One of these of course is the financial perspective. It is here where expenses and revenues are considered carefully, as well as the flow of money within the organization itself. In HR, in particular, this would include looking at the ratios of hiring costs versus productivity, and so on. Traditionally this is the aspect that has received the most attention, since most businesses have the primary goal of making profits while minimizing costs. However, this is just one of the four aspects which the balanced scorecard approach considers.

Another important aspect is the customer perspective. Here, customer satisfaction, among other things, is important to measure. The quality of the relationships between the organization and its clients is considered here using the appropriate metrics such as the percentage of return clients, etc.

The third aspect that the balanced scorecard approach considers is the internal business process perspective. What this encompasses are (of course) the internal processes that the organization needs to excel at. HR departments would do well to look at such things as new employee accommodation, the ease of communication between offices and staff, and so on.

The last aspect is the learning and growth perspective. Here, the organization’s capability to grow and adapt is measured. What is important here is then the quality of training that employees receive, as well as an efficient communications network that would allow fast and effective reaction to any contingency.

A strategic map is simply the process of drawing connections between the various processes and entities within the organization. This is in harmony with looking at the organization and its workings using these four perspectives as suggested by the balanced scorecard approach. Using a strategic map, the most important and relevant metrics may be identified. Once these are identified, creating the balanced scorecard itself becomes easy.

Implementing the balanced scorecard would then consist of just gathering the necessary data to evaluate performance using the selected metrics. These results are then put together in a weighted sum, balanced by the relative importance of each metric with respect to each other.

The balanced HR scorecard approach can help not only HR management, but any type of management to get a clearer picture of the organization. This then turns to the ability to translate this information into positive action, improving performance across the board.

Effective Methods for Non-financial Employees Motivation

There are indeed methods for non-financial employees motivation that companies can implement. This way, your employees become driven to perform better at their given job tasks and responsibilities.

For employees to perform at their very best, there would then come a need for companies to have them properly motivated. This way, the employees can then perform better and be more productive in the process. But when it comes to motivation, people often think that the only way to motivate employees is through financial rewards and means. This is not true at all. In fact, there are many effective methods for non-financial employees motivation.

The first effective method pertains to job enrichment. It is quite common for employees to find their jobs and the tasks that come with them tedious over time. An editor who has been working for a newspaper company for 15 years just might find editing news articles a bit boring already. And when this happens, the editor might not find his job appealing or interesting anymore. This is something you should definitely avoid because this can demoralize the performance of your editor. Pretty soon, your editor will be giving you edited articles that are in need of your attention simply because they are not edited well at all.

You should then set a work environment that promotes interesting and challenging tasks. This way, you give your workers opportunities to test their own skills. This, in turn, gives them the chance to use the full range of their skills and abilities. Job enrichment is actually better than job rotation. When you do job rotation, the given tasks are just rotated amongst your employees. Whereas with job enrichment, new sets of tasks are not given to the employees at all. Rather, more complicated tasks are given to the employees. This makes the employees motivated to do better because they feel that they have proven themselves worthy of being assigned more challenging and complex tasks. However, you do have to be careful when you are considering implementing job enrichment. You have to judge very carefully what sort of tasks a certain employee can handle. You would not want to assign your employees complicated tasks that they cannot handle now, would you?

Fostering teamwork is also an effective method to motivate employees in a non-financial way. People are inherent social beings. When you organize activities and events that foster teamwork, you actually give your employees the perfect chance to socialize and make new friends. The employees from the advertising department just might not know a lot of people from the information technology department. By organizing such events, you allow your employees to build camaraderie with their colleagues. And we all know how friendship and camaraderie can make any workplace fun. This, in turn, can motivate your employees to perform better.

Lastly, empowerment is also another aspect you can consider. This pretty much is similar to delegation. You actually give your employees the power or the authority to make certain decisions that affect their work load. Now, you also have to be extra careful on just how much power and authority to give to your employees. They might end up making wrong decisions that are costly for the company as a whole. But if your employees are indeed trustworthy of such delegation, then this would also greatly motivate them to perform better.

These are just some of the methods for non-financial employees motivation. Other methods include fringe benefits, training, and even seminars.