4 Strategic HR Planning Tips for 2025

The holidays are upon us, bringing the perfect time to slow down, reflect on your business’s successes from the past year, and contemplate strategies for further growth in the new year. One vitally important question to reflect on is: do you have a strategic HR plan for 2025?

Developing an HR plan ahead of the new year sets the stage for success throughout the year and allows your whole team to grow and benefit alongside your business. 2025 is already shaping up to be a year of significant change, and having a solid HR foundation as you enter this next year will be very beneficial as you adapt to the new changes coming your way.

In this blog, we share 4 strategic HR planning tips for you as a business owner to consider as we enter 2025 to drive both organizational and people growth and success.

Tip 1: Reflect on the Year

Now that we’ve reached the end of 2024, reflect on your HR strategies from the past year. Identify what worked and be honest about what did not work. What were your areas of strength and improvement? And which aspects of your HR strategies fell short of expectations?

We always encourage business owners to conduct the “Start, Stop, Continue” exercise, referenced in previous blogs, to better analyze what to maintain, initiate, or discontinue from their previous HR strategies. For those who do not know, this simple exercise is structured around 3 questions:

Start: What new strategies do you want to implement for your business next year?
Stop: What are the processes that no longer serve your business?
Continue: Which processes already work well for your businesses that should be maintained or built upon?

By utilizing the “Start, Stop, Continue” exercise, you can develop an actionable list of plans and strategies to enact in the new year. Your business can use this exercise and its data as a reference point for strategic planning moving forward.

Tip 2: Create an Actionable Plan for Your HR Strategies

After establishing a framework for how you envision your business operations in the upcoming year, set the time to get into the nuts and bolts of ensuring your HR strategies will support your vision. In this review, ensure that you have an actionable plan for these HR strategies and any others that will benefit your organization’s plans for the following year:

Review Your People Strategy. Ensure your HR goals align seamlessly with broader company objectives to foster cohesive and consistent growth for your people.
Budget for the Next Year: Prioritize efficient resource allocation to fund essential HR initiatives that will carry your team throughout the following year.
Enhance Employee Benefits: Review and revise employee benefits to stay competitive and boost retention. Ensure your team gets all they need from your current benefit plans and feels supported throughout the new year.
Invest in Employee Training and Development: Invest in employee programs that will enhance skills, encourage talent growth, and prepare your team for evolving challenges in the new year.

Tip 3: Incorporate Your People into Your Strategic Plan

As a business owner, you should also take this time to plan employee initiatives that align with projected growth and key objectives for the new year. Speak with or survey your team to gain insight into their goals for the new year and gather their thoughts on how the business performed in 2024 and where improvements can be made.

This two-way communication not only helps you understand your employees’ aspirations but also fosters a sense of inclusion and investment in the company’s future. Incorporating employee feedback into your strategic plan can enhance motivation, retention, and overall productivity. By aligning your team’s goals with the business’s key objectives, you create a unified direction supporting personal and company growth for the coming year.

It’s important to remember that pleasing everyone is unlikely; however, there are several steps you can take as a business owner to ensure that your plans will resonate with your staff and that you’re headed in the right direction.

Tip 4: Review and Update Key Resources

We talk with many business owners who often say that their business has been so busy over the last few years that HR has been put on the back burner. If this sounds like you, consider the following questions:

When was the last time you reviewed your employee handbook?
How recent are your HR policies?
Are your policies updated to reflect recent compliance changes?

If, after answering these questions, you realize that your key HR resources are out-of-date, we recommend that you schedule a time to meet with your HR advisory team and update your policies and resources. It’s important to note that even if your policies are still legally compliant, updates must be made if those policies no longer reflect your business’s practices.

Final Thoughts

The importance of a well-thought-out and comprehensive people strategy for your business in the new year cannot be overstated. An exemplary HR strategy will not only protect your business but will also set your employees up for future success in the long term.

Your employees are the engine on which your organization runs smoothly and effectively, and ensuring that their needs are met and that they are well taken care of is critical as we move into the new year.

We encourage all business owners to start planning early to ensure a comprehensive HR strategy for 2025. If your organization needs assistance with strategic HR planning or if you want guidance on how to start the new year on the right foot, please contact us at info@bergerhrsolutions.com or (410) 695-9888. Our team is ready and willing to help!

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