Talent Management
Understand Your Employer's Business To Become Strategic Partner
Q: I need to understand my company's business so that I can become a strategic partner. What information should I seek?
A: To help understand your company's business, you need information on how your business operates and the challenges that it faces. You may obtain this information from written materials and from your relationships with co-workers.
If your employer publishes an annual report, obtain the most recent one as well as ones from previous years. An annual report provides information on a company's structure, its business and where it operates, changing developments or trends, goals achieved or missed and actions taken. This report also includes current financial statements and a summary of finances from previous years.
For publicly traded companies, the annual report includes information on its stock—where it is traded, its stock symbol and high/low history and price/dividend trends over time. Many companies also periodically compile another report known as a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis. Other relevant documents include monthly financial reports such as balance sheets and profit and loss statements, monthly budgets, and cash flow analyses. In addition, ask to receive copies of each department's monthly or quarterly reports.
Establishing and maintaining good relationships with co-workers may help you obtain information about your organization. Get to know your co-workers, not just people in the HR department and not just people who are above you, but people throughout the organization. Learn to understand their views and needs. If you share appropriate HR information, they will be likely to give you information about their departments.
Participate in your organization's mentoring program. Good mentors for HR leaders striving to become or improve as strategic partners are the chief financial officer and the business development officer. Many successful executive and strategic partners have spent time in a variety of positions.
Develop a management job rotation program or participate in an already established one. Become involved in task forces or committees beyond the standard scope of HR. Attend and participate in management team and board of directors meetings.
In addition to information on your own organization, you need information on your industry. Some information, particularly information about trends in the industry, may be included in your company's annual report. Look for industry-specific articles in your regular sources for national and local news such as newspapers, magazines and news websites.
Investigate joining national and local professional or trade associations for your type of business. Many of these associations publish journals or magazines with helpful information. In addition, these memberships will provide you with the opportunity to establish a wide range of professional and personal contacts outside your organization with whom you can share information.
Article by Diane Lacy, SPHR, is an information specialist in SHRM's Information Center from http://www.shrm.org/kc/solutions/articles/archives/CMS_020746.asp#P-8_0