Human resources managers and professionals have been urged to take a more central role in helping their organisations adjust as the cost of doing business soars amid other workplace disruptions.
Osagie Okunbor, chairman, Shell Companies in Nigeria and MD, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, said during the CIPM CEO/CHRO/HRD forum, held in Lagos recently, with the theme, ‘Rethinking the role of HR: A CEO’s perspective’.
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Okunbor said that the critical issue for any CEO was how to retain talent. He, however, disclosed that businesses and government require resilience to cope. According to him, 2023 and beyond demand a high level of HR innovation and disruption. “As we move into the next decade of practice, we have to think of disruption,” he said.
He said that talent will be a big issue for businesses in the coming years and that tech, digitalization, and advancement are anchored on the business of talent. Hence, the a need for HR professionals to collectively speak the language of the business.
He also advocated for a good gender balance in organisations, citing Shell as an example, he said the oil and gas company is reaching a point in its global operation where over half of its board are female.
According to him, HR professionals must align people strategies with organisational goals, while leveraging data science to drive credible people outcomes in their organisations. He said that HR functional expertise should be paired with strong business knowledge and intimacy.
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Olusegun Mojeed, president and chairman governing council, the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM), said the forum was organised to help the Institute connect with the business community in Nigeria.
