A recently founded regional body, the Caribbean Institute for Human Management (CaIHRM) hosted its first webinar on October 30, 2024, with a focus on Re-imagining Caribbean HR: The Future Operating Model. This was done as a way of staying true to its mission, “As the voice of Caribbean HR is to unite and empower regional bodies through innovative representation, advocacy and capacity building.”
This inaugural event was opened by Mrs Georgia Donaldson (Director – CaIHRM) and moderated by Mr Michael McAnuff-Jones (Chairman – CaIHRM) who guided the rich discussions with presentations from the powerful and dynamic panel of regional executives and trailblazers which included:
Mrs Cavelle Joseph-St Omer – President, CaIHRM & Human Resource Management Association of Trinidad & Tobago (HRMATT)
Dr Cassida Jones Johnson – Director, CaIHRM & Human Resource Management Association of Jamaica (HRMAJ)
Ms Esaura Cumberbatch – Director, CaIHRM & Immediate Past President, The Bahamas Society for Human Resource Management
Mr Nicholas Roberts – Human Resource Management Association of Barbados (HRMAB)
The panellists discussed strategic initiatives through the five HR Operating Models highlighted in an article by McKinsey presented by the panellists who added their interpretation and views as follows:
Ulrich+
This model is an adaptation of the classic Ulrich model, with HR business partners developing functional spikes and taking over execution responsibilities from centres of excellence (CoEs). In turn, CoEs are scaled down to become teams of experts and selected HR business partners. They are supported by global business services and have a digital operations backbone. Many CHROs believe the classic Ulrich model is not up to solving today’s HR challenges, with HR business partners lacking the skills and time to keep up with the latest HR developments. Inflexible CoEs limit agile reactions, while other organisational boundaries have steadily become more permeable. Multinational businesses with mature and stable business models are often the ones that experience these pain points.
Agile
This model calls for a smaller number of HR business partners, with an emphasis on counselling top management, while CoE professionals focus on topics such as data and analytics, strategic workforce planning, and diversity and inclusion. The freed-up resources are pooled to implement cross-functional projects. CHROs who favour this operating model believe that HR needs to accelerate to keep up with the increased focus on execution exhibited on the business side and to prevent HR from hindering rapid transformation. Companies are applying this and other agile methodologies when experiencing rapid growth or discontinuity.
Ex-Driven
This model is meant to help CHROs gain a competitive advantage by creating a world-class EX journey. Putting EX first means allocating disproportionate resources toward “moments that matter.” For example, HR, IT, and operations experts could be granted full responsibility to jointly plan, develop, and roll out a critical onboarding process. By creating a world-class EX, HR becomes the driving force in bridging cross-functional silos and in overcoming the patchwork of fragmented data and processes that many organisations suffer from today. The companies employing this model are highly dependent on their top talent, with a small set of clearly defined competencies.
Leader-Led
In this model, CHROs transition HR accountability to the business side, including hiring, onboarding, and development budgets, thereby enabling line managers with HR tools and back-office support. This archetype also requires difficult choices about rigorously discontinuing HR policies that are not legally required. Too much oversight, slow response times, and a lack of business acumen in HR have led some companies to give line managers more autonomy in people’s decisions. Companies exploring this choice typically have a high share of white-collar workers, with a strong focus on research and development.
Machine-Driven
With this model, algorithms are used to select talent, assess individual development needs, and analyse the root causes of absenteeism and attrition—leaving HR professionals free to provide employees with counsel and advice. As digitalisation redefines every facet of business, including HR, CHROs are looking for ways to harness the power of deep analytics, AI, and machine learning for better decision outcomes. Organisations that are experimenting with this are primarily those employing a large population of digital natives, but HR functions at all companies are challenged to build analytics expertise and reskill their workforce.
(Excerpt – HR’s new operating model – December 22, 2022 | Article https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/hrs-new-operating-model)
