Do You Need a HR Department to Grow?

Business growth can lead to increased income, profitability, and opportunities when done correctly.

The trick for a business owner is to ensure that they carefully assess all business functions and decide whether they are sufficient to support a larger company or whether they need to be scaled up to handle extra work.

One of the stumbling blocks to business growth can be the increasing complexity of the HR requirements that usually accompany it.

So, does your growing business need an internal HR department?

And how might growing businesses meet growing HR requirements while delaying investment in a full HR department?

The good news is that there are useful strategies business owners can utilise to do just that.

The Importance of HR in Business

Employees are often cited as the most valuable asset a business has.

The reason for this is that good employees who are fairly treated and who operate in a positive and productive environment can take a business to the next level of productivity and profitability.

However, issues with employees - whether they are related to ineffective hiring and onboarding, a toxic or unsupportive workplace, or any one of the many other HR challenges businesses face – can bring an organisation to its knees.

Good HR practices really are make or break for a company.

Cost-Effective Ways to Access HR Functions in Your Business

Whether you have a manager or admin staff member taking care of recruitment and compliance, or a single HR staff member, it may soon be time to grow.

If investing in an entire HR department is not financially or logistically viable yet, a viable alternative is to upskill current staff to take on some HR functions.

While offering staff professional development training through a recognised training organisation does cost money, it works out far more cost effective than hiring additional HR specialists.

The first step is to identify suitable staff to take on selected HR functions - and then it's time to upskill your managers to nurture staff, recruit and retain great staff!

Looking for courses with recognition of prior learning in Australia, such as the Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning), can fast track the process for your managers, so they hit the ground running.

If your company is growing and you need more HR capability without the huge cost of an HR department, don’t despair! Your current staff represent an asset worth investing in – to the benefit of both you and your employees.