"We've already started to see a shift to global hiring, and I expect this trend to continue long after the pandemic.," says Tara Varjavandi. (Graphic by Chris Nicholls)
HR leaders can learn a good deal of lessons from the remote working arrangements that many companies were forced to make during the pandemic – takeaways that will help shape the workplace of the future as digital transformation accelerates.
Related: Taking the lead: The evolving role of HR professionals
Tara Varjavandi, vice president of human resources at Nakisa Inc. Recommended For You
In our latest chat in this series, BenefitsPRO caught up with Tara Varjavandi, vice president of human resources at Nakisa Inc., a Montreal, Canada-based company that provides cloud solutions for lease accounting, organizational design and corporate real estate.
Katie Kuehner-Hebert: How has the role of HR professionals changed in recent years, and what's driving it?
Over time, the primary objective of the HR function has remained the same. Managing employees, hiring talent and cultivating a strong and inclusive culture will always remain at the forefront of HR leaders' responsibilities. However, over the last several years, how we perform and achieve these functions has changed dramatically thanks to technology.
The move to become more digitized started long before the onset of COVID-19, but the pandemic accelerated the process in ways that were previously believed to be impossible. Today's HR leaders shouldn't lose sight of the primary objectives of HR, but should transform how we think about them to best serve a digital and remote workforce.
HR leaders must now rethink what it means to build a strong and inclusive culture for a virtual and remote workforce. Planning virtual gatherings that are non-work-related, encouraging employees to turn on their video cameras when in meetings, and developing new training and development processes are just a few ways HR leaders are adapting to this shift and helping employees feel less isolated.
The goals for HR have remained the same. How we achieve those goals have changed.
KKH: How has this shift impacted the relationship between the C-Suite, HR and employee benefits consultants?
Now more than ever, there is strong collaboration between HR leaders and the rest of the leadership team. HR leaders have direct access to employees, and over the past year have been listening to their needs, collecting their feedback and addressing their concerns. It's critical for CEOs to have this data and insight as they begin to determine what a return to the office and the future of work looks like. HR leaders are an integral part of this equation, helping guide business strategy in ways they were not previously responsible for.
There are three primary areas where HR leaders have been working much more closely with the leadership team: recruiting, culture and workforce realignments. HR leaders' focus in each of these primary areas has resulted in regular, close collaboration with business leaders in a way that we haven't seen before. As a concrete example, at Nakisa, we recently consolidated two business units to streamline goals and leadership. Although our overall relationship and responsibilities haven't changed, our role is now magnified as there are many additional considerations that we need to account for. This includes geography, remote-management, technology/tools and cultural impacts.
KKH: How has technology changed the way you work? How has it changed your role in the company?
Technology plays a huge role in the HR function. I'm not sure what we would do without it! The communication tools we have at our disposal today, such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom, are the reason HR leaders can continue to be successful in their roles, while still allowing employees to have the flexibility they want.
We also have the technology available today that provides HR leaders with real-time organizational design and workforce analytics that are needed to keep pace with continuous business transformation. These tools enable HR to be more strategic in their pursuit of structuring and managing teams, increasing DEI efforts, configuring compensation and benefit packages, and hiring the best talent possible for a role.
KKH: Do you see an increasing need for specialization within the field (talent management, compliance, diversity & inclusion, etc.)?
At Nakisa, we have a team of eight in the HR department, including one HR representative in Pakistan and one in Germany. Together, the team has the needed expertise to cover all aspects of HR, including talent acquisition and onboarding, talent management (employee engagement, training and development, performance management), compensation and benefits, as well as activities, polices and processes that enhance culture.
If asked this question a year ago, I would say for a company of our size, the need for specialization is not as strong. However, it has become more and more clear as we recover from the pandemic that HR teams at any size company need to have specialization within departments for maintaining company culture.
Ensuring that employees do not feel isolated, have access to their managers and teams when needed, and feel connected with their coworkers outside of work will be critical tasks HR leaders must perfect in the near future. Specialization in maintaining company culture and strong internal communication practices will play a huge role in this.
KKH: What skills will be most important to HR professionals in the future?
The HR function is depending more and more on technology, both for communication and to glean insights from workforce analytics and data. Being able to build strong connections with employees while not physically being in the same location as them, as well as adapting quickly to the continued digital transformation within HR, will be important skills for HR professionals to have in the future.
KKH: What trends, challenges or issues do you see most affecting your profession?
I see two major trends most affecting HR. The first is a focus on global expansion. We've already started to see a shift to global hiring, and I expect this trend to continue long after the pandemic. Organizations are becoming more and more international as they continue to grow and look for new talent. And companies that are already global are also ramping up their international presence and expanding to more countries. HR leaders will need to be well-versed in all of the hiring protocols and laws in different countries to ensure they are remaining compliant. Implementing technology-based solutions could help mitigate the challenges that come with global expansion.
The second trend is how companies rethink corporate values in the context of the world today. Employees spend a majority of their waking hours working, and it's important for companies to double-down on instilling strong company values that reflect this time commitment. Truthfulness, empathy, kindness, compassion and emotional intelligence are the soft skills that need to be brought into the workplace. Cultivating a company culture around these values will have a ripple effect on employees and the rest of the world. Developing this type of culture brings a higher sense of purpose to the role of HR leaders, and how companies treat their employees will be what separates successful companies from others.
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Katie Kuehner-Hebert
Katie Kuehner-Hebert is a freelance writer based in Running Springs, Calif. She has more than three decades of journalism experience, with particular expertise in employee benefits and other human resource topics.
