HR on the rise in UK organisations as business leaders latch onto potential

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HR is on the march in organisations across the country, as a new study shows the effect it has on business
HR is on the march in organisations across the country, as a new study shows the effect it has on business

The march forward of HR is continuing in UK organisations a new study has found. For just over half of UK organisations, HR is now a key part in business strategy.

The new research from NGA Human Resources, has found that HR is moving away from being seen as a purely administrative function and the large majority of UK business leaders (83 percent) now feel that HR departments clearly understand and contribute to the strategic direction of a business.

“HR has always been a strategic business function but, as our research has shown, business leaders are only now starting to realise what substantial contributions HR can actually make to their business more broadly,” commented Ian Dowd, Marketing Director, NGA HR UK.

Skills gap 

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It was also found that HR teams play an important part in helping companies overcome the skills gap by helping to retain talent. Three-quarters of leaders added that employee proposition developed by their HR departments to bridge this gap is strong enough to attract the right talent.

HR departments were also found to be behind internal training programmes that 75 percent of companies have put in place to give their staff the skills the business currently needs.

“No other department has access to such a wide pool of company and employee information that can be used to inform important strategic business decisions. It is great to see that HR teams are finally starting to get the recognition they deserve,” Dowd concluded.

Robert joined the HRreview editorial team in October 2015. After graduating from the University of Salford in 2009 with a BA in Politics, Robert has spent several years working in print and online journalism in Manchester and London. In the past he has been part of editorial teams at Flux Magazine, Mondo*Arc Magazine and The Marine Professional.

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