Outsourcing your HR – What to Consider
Outsourcing to external providers can offer many benefits, especially as the business community begins to redefine how the workplace looks after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Outsourced HR Services
With stress-related absence increasing by 70% among HR professionals due to the rising pressures of the pandemic and the complexities of the hybrid workplace, HR departments are increasingly turning to external support to help elevate some of these pressures and boost productivity within.
Spending some time to understand how resources are used internally balanced against the priorities for your business will help you identify the areas where you could most benefit from external specialist advice and support, to free up staff time to focus their skills and experience where it matters most.
Outsourcing human resource activity can mean issues are dealt with more seamlessly, and employees are able to work more productively too. According to the CIPD, payroll is the most outsourced HR activity, followed by providing advice on complex specialist topics.
Those who outsource their HR function report benefits that include*:
- Reduced costs
- Increased efficiency
- Access to improved HR IT systems without capital outlay
- Improved people management information
- Access to HR expertise not available within the company
- Increased flexibility and speed of response to problems
- Ability to support a company’s overall strategy
- Reduced risk
- Capacity for HR to operate more strategically
*(Benefits reported from CIPD here)
Selecting the right provider is as important as the decision to outsource, and a number of factors must be considered. Ensure to consider the ‘fit’ with the provider, which includes culturally as well as geographically, identify key relationship managers, and define a clear governance process so that the outsourced service is considered when any internal decisions are made.
