Evolving HR Needs: How to Adapt HR as Your Company Grows

As your small business grows, so do your human resources (HR) needs. HR is critical at every stage of your company's growth, from hiring the right talent to ensuring employee satisfaction and compliance with labor laws. Not sure what to expect regarding HR as your company scales? Justworks is here to help!

The Early Stages: Startups

In the early stages of a startup, the HR function is usually fairly straightforward. With a small team, hiring is often based on immediate needs, with everyone wearing multiple hats rather than following a specific job description. However, basic HR tools and strategies are essential to success even at this stage.

Building a Strong Foundation

When your company is just starting, your HR strategy should focus on:

• Hiring the right talent: You may not need to do much hiring at this stage, but the quality of your hires is critical. It’s important to hire people who have the skills you need, are adaptable to the needs of a startup, and are a good fit for your business. 

• Establishing policies: Creating basic hiring, onboarding, and performance management policies from the very beginning will give your company a strong foundation for HR that you can build on over time. 

• Compliance: Compliance is critical no matter how new your company is, including following all applicable federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations. 

Creating a Positive Work Culture

Company culture evolves with growth but begins developing its foundation in the startup stage. The tone that’s set during your organization’s early days will lay the groundwork for long-term culture. That’s why it’s so important to establish a positive culture from the very beginning. To start building a strong, positive workplace culture, be sure to encourage open communication, recognize employee achievements, and foster a collaborative environment.

Moving Forward: Scaling Up Beyond Startup 

As your company transitions from a startup to an established small or medium enterprise (SME), your HR needs become more complex, and you’ll benefit from scalable HR tools. With a larger team, you'll need a more structured approach to HR.

Developing HR Policies and Procedures

At this stage, developing comprehensive HR policies and procedures beyond what you needed as a startup is essential, such as: 

• Recruitment and onboarding: Standardize your hiring and employee onboarding processes to ensure consistency and fairness.

• Performance management: Implement a performance management system to provide feedback to employees and track their progress. 

• Employee benefits: Introduce employee benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off, if you don’t already offer them.

Enhancing Employee Development

Investing in employee development is essential to employee retention, as well as fostering innovation, that can lead to a competitive advantage for your business. That’s why you should offer training programs, career development opportunities, and mentorship to help employees grow within the company.

Ensuring Compliance

Regulatory compliance becomes even more critical with more employees. Regularly review your policies to ensure they align with local and federal labor laws, provide compliance-focused training, ensure employees know your policies and how to report potential problems, and train managers and supervisors on their compliance responsibilities.

Continued Growth: Mid-Sized Companies

When your business grows beyond a successful small business to become a mid-size organization, HR will need to grow with you. At this stage, taking a more strategic approach to HR management and utilizing HR tools that will help you simplify business operations for scaled-up growth becomes very important. 

Implementing HR Technology

As your business grows beyond a relatively small team, utilizing HR technology to streamline processes and improve efficiency becomes more important. HR software can help with:

• Applicant tracking: Simplify the hiring process with an applicant tracking system (ATS).

• Employee records: Maintain accurate and up-to-date employee records.

• Payroll and benefits: Automate payroll and benefits administration to reduce errors and save time.

Fostering Employee Engagement

Employee engagement is crucial for maintaining productivity and morale in a growing company. At this stage, it’s important to implement initiatives designed to foster employee engagement, such as:

• Employee surveys: Regularly survey your employees to gather feedback and identify areas for improvement.

• Recognition programs: Recognize and reward employees for their hard work and contributions.

• Team building activities: Organize team-building activities to strengthen relationships and promote collaboration.

Adapting to Changing HR Needs

As a business owner or manager, it’s important for you to know that HR is not just a support function. Instead, it's a strategic partner in your company's success. As your company grows, it's essential to adapt your HR strategies to meet evolving needs. A few tips that can help you navigate this process include:

1) Stay Agile

Be prepared to adjust your HR strategies as your company grows. Stay informed about industry trends and best practices to ensure your HR approach remains current and effective.

2) Develop Your HR Team

Invest in developing the team members who handle HR for your business. Provide training and development opportunities to keep them up to date with the latest trends and practices.

3) Seek Continuous Improvement

As your company grows, your HR team will expand, and your HR needs will evolve. Adjusting your HR approach as your business scales can help your company succeed at every stage. This is why it’s so important to continually seek to improve. Review your HR processes and policies regularly to identify areas for betterment and implement changes as needed.

4) Seek External Expertise

Consider working with external HR consultants or advisors to gain insights and benefit from their experience and expertise. They can help you develop and implement effective HR strategies tailored to your company's unique needs.

How Justworks Helps Scale HR 

Scaling HR as your business grows doesn’t have to take you away from focusing on building a successful business when you partner with Justworks. Whether you need help with onboarding or payroll or if you’d also benefit from compliance assistance, access to robust employee benefits packages, and opportunities to consult with HR experts, we’ve got your back. Contact us to get started!