People Operations

Our HR team is amazing – they not only handle our health insurance, but the effort they put into people operations has really made our organization a fun and functional place to work.

• Is People Operations the same as HR? While there is significant overlap between Employee Operations and Human Resources, and in some cases one may encompass the other, the use of the two different terms tends to correlate strongly with a different approach to managing workforces. Traditionally, HR departments tend to feel disconnected from the rest of an organization – and this is for good reason, as they handle plenty of labor work that could open an organization up to legal liability if succented to bias or informality. However, this can lead to employees never really engaging with HR except during onboarding, offboarding, and if legal concerns arise.People Operations sees managing human resources as more than just dotting every i and crossing every t – it understands that an organization’s success rests on the happiness, efficiency, and proper development of each and every individual working within the organization, and seeks to create strategies that limit turnover, give space for growth and development, and nurture strong leaders and high performers.
• What are some responsibilities of People Operations? Because People Operations is a more holistic and human-centered approach to workforce management, it can cover a wide variety of roles and responsibilities. A partial list of notable possible People Operations responsibilities includes:
  • Employee recognition 
  • Employee engagement
  • Building company culture
  • Developing employee policies
  • Shifting management styles to build employee trust
  • Creating space for employee support and full life cycle employee development

   

• How can People Operations benefit an organization? People Operations benefits organizations by taking an approach to workforce management that’s often warmer, more human-scaled, and more outwardly supportive than a traditional HR department, which can often come off as cold or too “by the book.” By offering support, guidance, and cultural improvement on the employee-by-employee level, a People Operations approach can more quickly identify dissatisfied employees, course-correct performance issues, and offer a roadmap forward, resulting in lower turnover, a more efficient use of employee talents and skills, and a happier overall workforce.
• What types of organizations use People Operations? Any organization can use a People Operations strategy, especially if they’re looking to reduce turnover and encourage longer tenures within the workplace. It’s also being used more and more by companies looking to stay at the cutting edge of managing their workforce and working to provide an inclusive and supportive environment. In short, any business that wants to bring their people management down to a human scale will see great value in taking a People Operations approach.