When HR Efforts Are Repeatedly Rejected by Management, Should You Keep Pushing?

Dear everyone,

I have a question regarding a situation where an HR professional puts in significant effort for the well-being of their employees but faces repeated rejections from the management. Should the HR individual persist in making more proposals, or is it advisable to wait for the current proposals to be accepted? If the management shows a lack of concern, how should one navigate such a challenging situation? I appreciate your insights and look forward to your response.

Dear Priya,

Dealing with a situation where an HR professional is putting in significant effort for employee well-being but faces repeated rejections from management can be challenging. Here are some considerations and potential strategies:

Assess the Situation:

Understand the reasons behind the rejections. Is it due to budget constraints, differing priorities, or a lack of awareness about the importance of employee well-being? Evaluate the impact of the rejected proposals on employee morale and overall workplace culture.

Communicate Effectively:

Clearly communicate the benefits and potential positive outcomes of the proposed initiatives to management. Use data, case studies, and examples to support your arguments. Address any concerns or objections that management may have. Be prepared to provide solutions or alternatives.

Build Allies:

Identify key influencers or stakeholders within the organization who may support your initiatives. Having support from other departments or influential individuals can strengthen your case.

Prioritize Proposals:

Prioritize your proposals based on their potential impact and feasibility. Focus on initiatives that align with the organization's strategic goals and objectives.

Show Return on Investment (ROI):

Demonstrate how the proposed initiatives can contribute to the organization's success and financial well-being. Highlighting a positive ROI may sway management in favor of your proposals.

Seek Feedback:

Request feedback on the rejected proposals. Understand if there are specific aspects that need improvement or modification. Use this feedback to refine and enhance your proposals.

Wait Strategically:

While waiting for current proposals to be accepted, continue to gather data and evidence that supports the need for employee well-being initiatives. This information can be valuable when making future proposals.

Consider Alternative Approaches:

Explore different approaches or variations of your proposals that might be more palatable to management. Flexibility in your strategy can increase the likelihood of acceptance.

Employee Advocacy:

Engage with employees to create a groundswell of support for well-being initiatives. Employee testimonials, surveys, or petitions can provide additional evidence of the importance of these initiatives.

Professional Development:

Invest in your own professional development to enhance your skills in presenting, negotiating, and influencing. This can empower you to navigate challenging situations more effectively.

Know When to Escalate:

If efforts to communicate and persuade consistently fail, consider discussing the situation with higher-level management or seeking guidance from HR leadership. Be diplomatic and present your case objectively.

Persistence and strategic thinking are crucial in navigating such challenging situations. While waiting for current proposals, it's important to continue advocating for employee well-being and exploring different avenues to gain management support.

Thanks

Dear Priya S. Lakshmi,

You have raised a post on the rejections of the proposals by the management but have not given adequate information about what those proposals were. However, what is happening in your company happens in many other places too. This is because the top leadership has a single-minded focus on increasing profit. Against this backdrop, everything is a cost to them.

As far as human resources are concerned, hardly do these people understand their importance. The idea of the organization being as strong as its human resources never occurs to them. Human resources, or the people, satisfy the customers. They also come up with innovative ideas to improve the products or processes. But to tell all this to the management is like water off a duck’s back!

However, that does not mean that you should give up. You may change your approach to the proposals. Much depends on trust. Do you have sufficient trust in the eyes of the top leadership? If not, or to improve it, as of now you may give the ideas to:

a) to reduce the cost of the operations
b) to reduce the consumption of the resources
c) to reduce the process turnaround time of some process

For example, don't just propose a training program for the employees. Instead, you should put forth a proposal wherein you can show which training will reduce which cost and when.

These productivity improvement ideas will help change their attitude towards you. Later, you may come up with the idea of the well-being of the human resources. However, even then, that proposal should save some cost.

The trouble with working in the HR department is the lack of quantification of the benefits. The ease with which the quantification or measurement of the work is done in the Purchase, Production, or Sales department cannot be done in HR. Resultantly, the HR department itself is considered a burden!

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar