Consulting gone wrong

Our cover story this month is by Sandy Dodge 

Consulting in the HR arena in any company can be tricky - after all, you're dealing with people, and this introduces a plethora of variables into the equation. One of the traps that HR consultants can fall into is not having any documented agreements for the service they will provide to managers. This can often cause a fluctuation in what the client's expectations are of the service to be delivered. Major drivers for having quality assurance systems for all aspects of business will continue with government trends and international market forces. So, how do you balance the level of service provided with the need to meet quality assurance (QA) standards? 

Mitchell, an HR Manager in a manufacturing company tells of how implementing his QA processes went awry:  

'Our HR needed to implement service level agreements (SLAs) with all our line managers within a very tight timeframe; therefore, we needed to cut some corners in our processes. We hired an IT specialist to build an HR SLA database for us which would track the services we would provide. The software itself was fine, but we had great problems using it due to the limited IT capabilities of the company. There were also issues of confidentiality of information as it was on our mainframe system. There were a couple of instances where information fell into the wrong hands which caused a lot of turmoil and led to two staff being on workers compensation as a result of stress.' 

Sophie, a self-employed HR consultant, advocates that SLAs (and associated QA processes) should be regarded as best practice in HR: 

'It's all about ensuring you have sufficient time to implement these agreements and processes within an organisation. I have learnt over the years - mostly from making my own mistakes with consulting assignments- that planning is essential for successful transition to SLAs. I had some disasters in my early days of SLAs - mostly with companies either trying to make systems too complex and unworkable, or having too many hidden agendas in their SLA processes. The key to success is to ensure you consult sufficiently with the stakeholders and don't try to bring in QA processes that make the staff slaves to the system. The system should work for you, rather than have you work for it. Be sure what you are including is appropriate - particularly if there are any legal ramifications.' 

Nick, an HR Manager, and Sarah, a line manager and one of Nick's clients, both agree with Sophie's comments. They work in a large pharmaceutical company involved with both manufacturing and sales. Nick explains from his perspective:  

'When the company decided to implement HR SLAs with all the business managers, this met with a fair amount of resistance. Managers were suspicious of what was being offered and couldn't see the value of it. They felt it wasn't necessary. We also made the mistake of not selling the concept properly as well. We assumed they would all come on board eventually. The HR consultant we contracted to set up our systems had to pull out halfway through the assignment due to illness, which made matters worse. We then found out that he had included a number of unrealistic targets and standards with a number of the managers, which took a lot of convincing on our own part in order to get them to re-negotiate. The whole process nearly came unstuck.'  

Sarah adds:  

'I could see that the SLA originally negotiated with me was not going to benefit me or my business unit at all. Nick and I sat down and discussed what had been proposed and successfully renegotiated this to my satisfaction. I just wanted something simple that clearly spelt out my expectations of Nick's area.' 

SLAs don't need to be complex, but they do need to articulate clearly the level of service that is negotiated between the HR function (internal or external) and the clients, with appropriate QA measures. You need to ensure that the quality processes you set up will provide you with the data you require to monitor your SLAs accurately. Remember that if this is a new process to your organisation, adequate planning and consulting will be your keys to success.