Agility is all about thinking and understanding concepts quickly.  As the pace of the world quickens so too must HR’s response to it.  We start by thoroughly defining what agility is and how it works.

Agility:  What is it?

For human resources, agility is the process by which a large project, for instance, is broken up into smaller pieces.  Those smaller pieces are then assigned to different groups and the work begins.  Throughout the course of the project those groups are in constant communication and are changing and updating the project regularly.  And the work is happening in a non-linear fashion, meaning some pieces of the project are completed before others.

Companies not engaging with an agile strategy run the risk of being left behind.  And the numbers support that idea.

71-percent of organizations use agile approaches across the board.  98 percent of those see some form of success.

CultureIQ worked with Bloomberg to survey 300 senior executives about the Future of Work.  In that research, one of the first things they learned is work is becoming more complex.  How?  Companies are becoming more agile either by force or organically.  Executives know they have to do this in order to remain competitive.  In fact, CEOs recognized that one of the most important factors in their organization’s performance for the next three years was ensuring their organization was agile.

CultureIQ says agility ranked higher than other attributes like collaboration, engagement, or innovation.

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Why an agile HR?

When it comes to adopting an agile mindset, the best place to start is with HR.  Payal Sondhi, an HR Managers with SILA, says it makes sense given the fact HR is the department offers “business value in terms of growth capabilities, efficiency and cost savings.”

In addition, HR is best suited to help a company realign its strategy with agility as the critical component.

Sondhi suggests a three step approach to implementing an agile HR department.

First, she says to start small.  Don’t introduce agility to the entire HR department.  Pick one team and then experiment from there.  More than 45-percent of organizations say agility is hard to accept because it is not supported internally.  Sondhi says introducing it to one team first allows a company to test agility and to prove its worth to the larger HR organization.

Secondly, there must be consistency.  At some point, the strategy must be rolled out to every function that falls within the human resources umbrella.  Not doing so will lead to an unbalanced department; some will progress faster than others.

Finally, Sondhi says agile tools must be used.  This allows teams to keep a pulse on their progress and it allows for real-time feedback.  It also helps with the alignment of goals with the overall business and it helps leadership make minor changes to the strategy along the way.

In summation

The most important thing to remember here is agility helps move the HR department and the organization as a whole move forward.  At the end of the day, it’s about taking on projects and turning those projects in a high-speed, correct manor.  Keeping pace with the competition is key to the survival of the company, and in today’s rigorous working environment, increasing efficiency and productivity provide a full-proof road to success.