Get Ready to Scale by Understanding Business Needs

As your business begins to scale, the potential for disruption and operational bumps in the road can increase. That’s why understanding business needs ahead of growth can minimize the disruption.

If your company is ready to scale, it is essential that your HR team do its part to support that growth each step of the way. How can HR managers start understanding business needs and adapt? Start by focusing on three key tasks: assess, plan, and improve.

Assess your resources now

It's important to assess your workforce regularly. Doing so can help you understand what you have and what you need regarding resources. You can also identify what is changing in your actual workforce. Also, look for changes in your industry with which your workforce must keep pace. Assessing the industry and hiring landscape can help position the business to be more competitive in the marketplace.

Start by assessing current employee skills and abilities. Look for trends in employee reviews that might indicate areas for improvement such as training, employee development, and policy updates.

Consider evaluating your HR service provider to determine if they can take you to the next stage of growth and beyond. They should have the capability to support your business needs with the latest in program options, service offerings, and cutting-edge technology.

While you are assessing your provider, it may also be an opportune time to assess your HR data systems. Determine if it's time to change to a new platform that can scale with you. It's important to select a provider that can help neutralize the stresses that may come with any necessary data migration.

Plan for your vision

Think of the specific tasks and jobs that will be needed to support your anticipated growth. Determine the jobs and their descriptions based on your business needs, as well as the order in which those jobs will become a reality. The need can change over time with the pace of your growth, but having these details worked out can be handy if you scale faster than anticipated.

As you plan, be clear on what direction you want to see your business grow. Use that plan to hire, train, and cultivate the talent of employees who can take it in the desired direction. If you anticipate a need for leaders, then provide leadership and management training. If you will need better service representatives, then establish or strengthen your customer service training.

Improve processes while you are still small

Improving your hiring process can be far easier while you are still relatively small. This is when you can evaluate how you advertise job openings, identify and qualify candidates, onboard new employees, conduct exit interviews, and explore causes of turnover. Fine-tune your process so that it works effectively, whether you are expanding by five or 500 employees.

Prepare to build your HR department now, even if it means starting with one dedicated employee. A recent Paychex study revealed that two-thirds of HR leaders feel they have grown beyond a traditional administrative function into a more strategic role. Look for employees with the management and leadership potential to meet your business needs, both today and tomorrow.

Scaling your business is no small task. Assess, plan, and improve now for a smoother road to the growth you envision.