Collaborating With Your Finance Department

Everything that HR does is funded via the Finance department. For too long the two have worked almost separately of one another, but the time is approaching where this gap needs to be closed.

Both hold very important roles in the company, yet rarely do they meet to discuss how to better improve these goals.

Instead of working independently, the future is showing us that the two entities are slowly beginning to work in unison – to build synchronous tactics to plan, analyze and forecast positions.

To get this started, plan to hold regular meetings between the two departments.

• Use this time to invest in discussing current and future goals.
• Find out where they match and where they differ with the end goal to be a unified plan.

By achieving agreement, Finance can for example plan for any job offers that will be made and Human Resources will know exactly how much it can offer. At these meetings, the realities of pay can be openly shared and broken down (at the highest level!). Concessions can be made by both parties to determine the best course of action for the company’s current position.

In order for this to work, there have to be ground rules in place to guide the flow of discussion and understanding.

• First, the entire purpose of the collaboration must be determined. There can be no progression unless there is something to progress toward.
• From there, the analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats can be addressed. This will set up the parameters of the absolute most that can be done as well as the absolute least.
• The data can then be combined to come up with a happy medium that benefits both parties.

Though it immediately helps finances and HR, the company as a whole derives increased benefits from such a partnership. Aside from increased information, there is a much higher sense of responsibility. The problem of scapegoating between the two departments is severely lessened since each one is given specific rules to follow. Growth is yet another benefit.

With the budget staying within what it needs to, the company can then take any once wasted money and use it to invest in the progress of the business, either through customer or employee support.

Internal collaboration is always a great idea, especially between HR and Finance. Both departments see to the well-being of the employees but in very different ways.

Only by merging the two can true progress be made! Instead of butting heads over for example ‘investing in‘ new talent or ‘rewarding‘ those already there, working together allows each side to express the importance of certain tasks they need doing.

From there, they can present to management the fruits of their combined efforts.

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