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Having worked as an HR representative for over 10 years, I’ve seen my share of challenges! Mediating conflicts, rebuilding teams, diminishing turnover… It’s as tough as it is rewarding, especially in IT. So let’s talk about the relationship between HR and IT!
Who is This Text For?
I write this blog to two groups of people. First and foremost, HR professionals who have no experience with working in IT. I’d like to share with you some insights about what’s unique in the Information Technology industry for Human Resources professionals.
I also write this to developers and other IT staff who might not have a clear picture of what Human Resources is or does. Especially in big companies, HR might be literally distant from the day-to-day operations, and you might only meet a representative in key moments such as hiring and evaluation performances.
Recap: What is HR?
First of all, what is HR?
The role of HR departments has evolved over time, from perceiving them only through the prism of employee documentation, through associating their work only with recruitment, until it was finally noticed that this department can be a real and important business partner. This is due to the fact that the most valuable resource in any organization are people, and their satisfaction with the work and commitment that they put into the implementation of tasks translates very simply into achieving high results by the company.
Do not be persuaded into the idea that HR is only for the company or only for people. It is exactly in the middle! If you want to be successful, both parties must be in a win-win relationship.
Working With HR in IT: 3 Insights
1. IT Companies Manage Projects Differently
As a software house, Kambu provides an exciting and very unique environment for HR. I get to interact daily with both on-premise and remote workers that possess very technical skills while also supporting modern work methodologies.
Just as the rest of the company, HR in Kambu is powered by agile procedures.
Curious? Learn more about Kambu!
The way of working and managing projects is very specific in agile. A lot of attention is paid to planning work in sprints, estimating the time of completing tasks, and verifying whether the goals have been achieved after the assumed time (usually one or a couple of weeks).
This is a considerable challenge for someone working in the HR department, but if they can cope with it, it can only get better.
That’s because the Agile methodology influences the creation of a work environment that fosters autonomy and development, and, as a result, work that is based on internal motivation. This brings specific business value to the organization, as well as individual and team development.
The Agile HR Manifesto explains well:
- Collaborative networks over hierarchical structures
- Transparency over secrecy
- Adaptability over prescriptiveness
- Inspiration and engagement over management and retention
- Intrinsic motivation over extrinsic rewards
- Ambition over obligation
2. IT Companies Use Specific Internal Tools
The day-to-day in an IT company involves a myriad of state-of-the-art tools and software, which can be a challenge.
Having worked outside the IT industry before, I did not realize that you can use so many tools at the same time, e.g. for logging work time, planning tasks and long-term goals, or communication.
When the HR representatives are adapted to these tools and processes, however, they are much more well-equipped to understand and respond to employees’ concerns.
One example: let’s say an employee has a question about extra hours. The Jira software holds information about time spent on each project, effectively working as the regular timesheet you see in other industries. So, if HR reps that know how to use Jira will probably be able to find the answer much quicker.
3. Remote Work Has Been The Reality For a Long Time
A big challenge in the everyday work of an HR Manager in IT is the fact that a large number of people work remotely and come to the office a few times a year.
For the HR department, it is a challenge to take care of employees and their integration at a distance. But it’s important to note that more often than not, in IT both employees and employers are familiar or even expect that distance.
This makes the role of HR even more important in the context of caring for the company’s organizational culture and employee experience overall.
By the way, this is one of the many reasons why covid was so traumatic in the job market: a lot of HR personnel simply didn’t have the knowledge and tools required to adapt to the reality of remote work. But that’s another story.
Conclusion – The Core Is The Same
In this text, I outlined three aspects that are very specific to HR in IT. The way projects are managed, the tool involved and the remote work all present distinct challenges.
If you are an HR professional and think your industry offers stale day-to-day, maybe IT can do wonders! Every day there’s learning.
And if you are a developer and read until this point, hopefully, this text helped clarify how HR works.
All that said, the fundamentals of HR never change, no matter the industry.
If you like people, the energy that comes from them drives you just as much, no matter what industry you work in.
My standards of work in HR are also unchanged: a people-centric and respectful approach, openness to others’ needs, and responsiveness. Everything else is just a matter of slightly different responsibilities or other adjustments that need to be dealt with.
