Effective workload management: Tips for HR professionals
Workload management is a challenging aspect of working life for anyone, regardless of whether they’re in a management or leadership position or not. This is especially true for HR professionals, as their department is often overlooked or not given enough credit in the world of business, which can lead to an absence of HR staff, yet a demanding workload remains. Due to this demand, HR professionals are typically strapped for time and balance immediate tasks alongside long-term company goals and larger projects.
In order to achieve this, HR professionals must utilise time management skills, tools, and the best HR software possible, to manage their workload effectively. Sadly, workload management has and always will be difficult for HR professionals, which we don’t think will change anytime soon due to the nature of the job. Nonetheless, HR professionals can work to improve it by making a few small changes. So if you’re looking to control your caseload, we’ve compiled this article aimed at HR professionals looking to manage their workload efficiently; here are some steps to get you started.
Use the best software/tools available
For HR professionals, there is a vast array of tools/software at your disposal to help with effective workload management, from tools designed to help HR professionals plan their day to the best HR software used by individuals for assistance with routine, repetitive HR tasks. Effective workload management starts at the beginning of your day, so ensure that you’ve invested in physical planning tools such as calendars, diaries, or desk planners.
Alternatively, you could use virtual planning tools, like the memo feature on your smart device or a desktop-based reminder service or software. Using virtual features is helpful, as they will send you real-time notifications so that you can allocate specific parts of your day to certain tasks and get reminded when to move on to the next. On the other hand, if you haven’t already, you could invest in software for human resources, which will help you effectively manage your workload and other areas of your department. Consider enlisting the services of leading HR software providers such as myhrtoolkit, whose platform can assist your department with a range of HR services from staff management and holiday planning to training management, which makes for more time allowances for tasks to be completed.
Encourage employees to be pro-active
We’d wager that most HR professionals’ time is spent answering repetitive, routine questions from staff members and other colleagues, the answers to which could be found by themselves through being a little pro-active. Responding to several of these queries on a daily basis can be a hindrance to HR professionals. Still, HR professionals can avoid it by educating employees and colleagues to find the relevant answers. Supposing that your business uses the best HR software for your department’s needs, you should take advantage of these tools and encourage employees to use the software/ business portal to answer their routine questions.
For instance, say an employee has a query relating to holiday allowance and the allocation they have left, and you’re aware that your workplace HR software caters to these types of queries. You should first and foremost encourage staff members to be proactive and use the software to see if they can find the answers to any of their questions and only approach HR management for complex queries or if they cannot find the answer. Encouraging employees to be proactive and find solutions for themselves wherever possible will help HR professionals manage their workloads effectively. Doing so will minimise the number of unnecessary questions received and allow HR professionals more time to focus on more time-demanding tasks.
Assign tasks to other members of your department
HR professionals deal with a very demanding workload. For the individuals within leadership or management positions, one of the most crucial aspects of leadership is demonstrating quality people management skills to assign tasks to other members of the department. Although the urge to do everything yourself is strong when you’re in a management position, it’s essential that you prevent burnout and divide the department’s workload fairly so that your colleagues work effectively as a team.
You could manage this effectively by assigning tasks to other team members based on skill level, so that harder, more strategic jobs are kept for management and senior team members, leaving the slightly easier duties for less experienced staff or apprentices. Effectively delegating tasks and roles to other members of your department demonstrates a level of trust amongst your team and allows management to manage their workload more efficiently by providing individuals with more time to focus on challenging tasks or upcoming deadlines. Doing so also saves wasting precious minutes of your working day on jobs that other members of your department could easily tackle and frees up your work calendar for others.
