How HR can become agile

In a rapidly changing business landscape, where adaptability and responsiveness are paramount, Human Resources (HR) departments are no exception. The traditional, rigid HR practices of yesteryears are making way for a more dynamic and agile approach. 

In this blog, Aniday will explore how HR can become agile, why it's essential for modern organizations, and how HR can embrace agility to stay relevant and effective in the 21st-century workplace. Let's dive into the transformative journey of HR towards agility.

What is Agile in HR?

Agile methodology, initially applied in software development and project management, emphasizes iterative and collaborative approaches to achieve faster product solutions through incremental steps. This approach allows for testing ideas and adapting to changes swiftly, resulting in greater innovation, faster implementation, and enhanced efficiency.

Traditional HR vs. Agile HR

• Traditional HR relies on strict hierarchical structures and rules. 

• Agile HR adopts a simpler and more collaborative approach that emphasizes feedback, innovation, and engagement.

Benefits of Agile People Leadership

Behind the seemingly chaotic exterior of an agile HR approach lies a well-thought-out methodology. The benefits of adopting an agile HR approach encompass, but are not restricted to, the following:

• Enhanced Team Collaboration: Agile HR fosters improved communication and collaboration among employees from various parts of the organization. Emphasizing transparency, it builds trust within the team.

• Regular Feedback: An agile HR approach ensures the reception of consistent and frequent feedback. This allows HR to develop solutions that are not only relevant but also highly effective.

• Adaptability: The agility of the methodology becomes particularly apparent in times of change, as demonstrated during the pandemic. The "test, learn, and optimize" approach enables teams to swiftly adapt to evolving conditions.

• Result-Oriented Measurement: Agile places a strong emphasis on results, reflected in current dashboards and visualizations. Consequently, the HR department can demonstrate tangible results tied to the time, cost, and performance of any initiative.

How HR can become agile with retrospectives

1. Retrospective Meeting Best Practices

For optimal results, a Retrospective meeting is most effective with a participant count ranging from three to seven members. Typically, teams convene every two weeks for a one-hour session throughout a project or the team's lifespan. 

During the early project phases, more frequent weekly meetings or extended one-and-a-half-hour sessions can be beneficial. It's advisable to designate a moderator in advance, preferably at the conclusion of the previous Retrospective, with a beneficial practice being the rotation of the moderator role for each meeting.

2. The Ideation Phase

At the meeting's outset, the moderator sets a 15-minute timer, initiating the ideation phase. Each team member is provided with blank index cards and a marker, where they briefly jot down a topic they wish to discuss, akin to a headline. They also indicate whether it falls under "Happy," "Meh," or "Sad." Each topic is allotted its own index card.

When the timer expires, markers are set aside. The moderator sets a 10-minute timer to gather the index cards and categorize them into "Happy," "Meh," and "Sad." Subsequently, the cards are reviewed with the team. Each card is read aloud, with 30 seconds allocated for additional explanations, emphasizing that this is not the time for discussions. The moderator ensures efficiency.

The "Happy" category is an occasion for celebration, with cheers and applause encouraged to uplift the team's spirits in preparation for subsequent, potentially challenging discussions. The moderator vigilantly manages time to ensure all cards are read aloud before the timer expires.

3. The Selection Phase

The team now transitions to the selection phase. The moderator sets a five-minute timer, allowing the team to vote on topics for the remainder of the meeting. Each team member has three votes, using their markers to mark their selections on the cards. 

They can allocate all three votes to one card if they prefer. Once all participants have finished voting or when the timer elapses, the cards are prioritized based on the number of votes received.

4. The Discussion Phase

In the discussion phase, the moderator initiates a 15-minute timer, allowing the individual who wrote the card under discussion one minute to commence the conversation. The primary objective of this discussion is to generate actionable items.

The moderator's role is pivotal in maintaining the discussion's focus and continually soliciting the group for potential action items. These action items are the core of the retrospective, as they provide the meeting with its purpose and significance.

Following the conclusion of the timer, the discussion phase repeats for the subsequent two topics, with a five-minute timer allocated for each.

5. Reviewing and Assigning Action Items

The final five minutes of the meeting are dedicated to reviewing and assigning action items. Each item is attributed to an owner, a crucial step in the process that ensures someone is accountable for advancing the item.

6. Adapting Retrospectives to People Teams

While this format may appear structured, it remains highly adaptable. Notably, there is no aspect of this process exclusive to software development. It is equally applicable to various team contexts. Software development discussions may encompass topics like testing strategies, tooling enhancement, deployment issues, and interpersonal dynamics.

However, the bi-weekly retrospective approach is beneficial for any team, including People Teams. For People Teams, the most effective retrospectives occur within groups that interact frequently or perform similar roles. Productive areas of discussion may revolve around prospecting, candidate communication, negotiation, and, certainly, onboarding.

Retrospectives benefit cross-functional teams like your hiring team as well. We've employed this format to enhance our interview process. For instance, our engineering-focused recruiters brought together engineering hiring managers and interviewers for retrospective meetings.

In these sessions, we assessed the effectiveness of interviews in our hiring plan, identifying areas of concern. Our recruiters provided data on interview pass-through rates and candidate survey results.

By collaborating, we implemented changes to ensure the assessment of the right candidate attributes and create a fair evaluation process for candidates with diverse technical backgrounds. We also addressed offer acceptance and candidate engagement.

For the blog post, Aniday has explored "How HR can become agile." The insights gained have led us to grant candidates more time to inquire about their future team, which, in turn, allows us to better convey why choosing Aniday is the right decision. Retrospectives offer numerous avenues to enhance your People Team's processes continually, not only improving the candidate experience but also fostering the well-being and effectiveness of your team.