Dave Ulrich: HR from the Outside In is still relevant

If HR professionals want to deliver more value to their organizations, they must learn to be more aware of what is happening outside the company. This is the main idea of the "HR from the Outside In" concept created by one of the most influential personalities in the field of human resources management, author of HR Business Partnership, consultant and professor of the University of Michigan - Dave Ulrich. He describes this concept in a book of the same name and he also presented it at the UK's largest conference for HR managers. The HR Director's Business Summit took place in early February in Birmingham, as reported in the HR Magazine website.

“Don’t look at what your business is struggling with, look at what your market is struggling with,” he said. “Instead of strategy being a mirror, make it a window. Look through your strategy to the outside world.” said Ulrich. According to him, HR should not perceive only employees as its customers, but take into account all external stakeholders of their companies.

Ulrich also recommended HR professionals to cooperate more with their colleagues from marketing in order to see whether their internal ideas correspond to external needs. “When your internal culture reflects your external promises, you get value,” concluded Dave Ulrich.

Learn to measure leadership

HR no longer has to fight as hard for its place in the top management of companies as before. However, when HR people sit at the highest negotiating table, they must bring relevant information concerning talent, culture and leadership.

Ulrich mentioned the importance of leadership development and measurement at the end of his speech in Birmingham. Investors are becoming more and more interested in leadership, but they don't know how to measure it. That is where HR will play a crucial role. Ulrich is already working on a metric he calls "Leadership Capital index which is to be introduced this autumn.

Book

ULRICH, D. et al: HR from the Outside In: Six Competencies for the Future of Human Resources, New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. 272 p.

ULRICH, D. et al: Nová éra řízení lidských zdrojů – ze servisu partnerem. Šest kompetencí pro HR budoucnosti.. Prague: Grada, 2014. 304 p.

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