Strategy | KPMG's People Director on HR's need to be business-led

HR has long fought to gain a seat at the table when it comes to business, but for that to become a possibility, it’s essential the people profession takes on a commercial outlook when it comes to making key business decisions.

Having commercial acumen and the ability to align strategic decisions with budget and workforce priorities will help to ensure any HR practitioner gets taken seriously within a business, while also building necessary skills for the evolving role.

This theory was supported by the 2016 Hays Human Resources survey. In the study of 461 HR leaders, 52% cited commercial acumen as one of the most important skills an HR professional can gain, followed by strategic planning at 48%. Elsewhere, 57% claimed that up-and-coming HR leaders need to be commercially-minded and good business people.

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In contrast, CIPD’s 2015 HR Outlook Survey discovered that just 27% of senior HR practitioners felt they needed to combine commercial and HR expertise to bring value to their organisation.