Entrepreneurs bear responsibility for their company, and the company bears responsibility for the people who work in it. These people, in turn, contribute to the success of the company through their input, their knowledge, their skills and, above all, their personal commitment and their health. These people are the ones who establish and expand the connections to and communication with all external parties who interact more or less directly with the company.
It is therefore crystal clear that entrepreneurship is ‘people business’ and ‘people business’ is at the core of every company.
This third decade of the 21st century is a critical period for all of us across the globe. It is a moment of truth for all enterprises. And, as entrepreneurs or intrapreneurs, we are being challenged as we have never been challenged before. Disruptive changes are reshaping the environment.
It is obvious that there are still many leaders who think that business revolves only around technology, sales, manufacturing processes or the supply chain. This narrow view will not lead to sustainable success. Successful companies revolve around human needs and the need to employ the right people.
To be successful, entrepreneurs must be as familiar with and knowledgeable about the latest trends and fads in modern HR work as they are with basic HR tools. Many of the trends that were popular ten years ago are no longer relevant today, and today's top tools will probably face the same fate in the future. Essentially, there is a consistent basic framework, the individual parts of which continue to develop, and which is constantly augmented by new elements. Unilateral action will not lead to success in the medium to long term. Trendy tools alone will not help companies succeed if they fail to understand and classify basic human needs, behaviour patterns and patterns of social cooperation. Companies that rely predominantly on tried-and-tested methods and continue to maintain cultural, systemic and organisational components with no expectation of meaningful further development are also probably also doomed to fail.
It’s not necessary for entrepreneurs to master all the individual HR fields and their characteristics in detail, and, of course, they should not allow themselves to get bogged down with daily personnel tasks. Their own preferences or strengths should never be in the foreground when it comes to decisions about the direction of the department. But they need a good toolkit for controlling, applying, and developing their own way of thinking and behaving. And they need to be able to assign the right people to carry out the company’s HR tasks, as well as manage them and appropriately assess their recommendations or decision proposals.
Finally, entrepreneurs need to know the difference between people management as a process within the operational organism and leadership as a managerial function. Those with this managerial function have an influence on how people management is implemented, but this is different from the tasks and methods of people management.
The purpose of people management is to attract the best possible people to the company, to help them grow and develop within the company and to retain them. The aim is to enable the people who work in or with the company to optimally perform and collaborate, to motivate them and to help them maintain their health.
Important elements of people management are:
Purpose
Having a meaningful purpose is key to staying focused on the things that matter most. It helps in setting priorities and avoiding activities that don't serve the purpose. Employees will be most committed to their work when the company’s purpose is also meaningful to them and they feel as though they are contributing to the greater good.
Involvement
One key factor for success is the participation of staff in strategy and business activities as well as management and decision-making. It gives employees a sense of belonging to the company, which, in turn, leads them to become more reliable. They accept greater responsibility for their work and achieve better results.
Stakeholder
If a company does not know its stakeholders and understand their needs, it will not be able to actively manage business-relevant areas. This could include anyone with whom a company communicates or associates, such as customers, local community members, government officials, investors, competitors or anyone else who interacts with the company.
Talent
One important task of an entrepreneur is to create conditions that ensure that the right people with the appropriate skills are entrusted with tasks in which they can achieve the greatest possible success for both the company and themselves. This calls for awareness, intuition and consistency on the part of the entrepreneur.
Career
At first glance, the topic of career seems to be very personal for each individual employee. However, companies that consciously address the career planning and ongoing development of their employees can better develop talent and more effectively put it to use, helping to avoid undesirable employee turnover and demotivation.
Recruitment
Successful recruitment is the result of professional interaction between all individuals involved in the process. This is an important, sensitive and highly individualised process, so it is essential to have the necessary awareness and properly set priorities. Entrepreneurs must ensure that this interaction runs well.
Alumni
Corporate alumni can enhance employee loyalty, reduce employee turnover and retain talent by leveraging the power of a network of past and present employees. Past employees may become customers as well as deliver benefits in the form of new hires, referrals, marketers, lobbyists, investors, suppliers and many more.
